order viagra onlinebuy cialis onlineSimnel Flapjack

Posted on buy cheap cialisbuy cialis onlineMarch 27, 2013 by buy levitra onlineorder viagra onlineLaura

Simnel Flapjack 1

Flapjack is a relatively simple thing to bake but, until recently, I’d always had trouble producing any that didn’t crumble and fall apart. These ones hold up beautiful though and make the perfect snack for my boys when we’re going out. It turns out that the trick is to press the flapjack mix down into the pan before baking. It seems a bit obvious now but never occurred to me before.

Simnel Flapjack 2

In addition to being quick and simple to make flapjack is also very versatile. Just start with the base of butter, sugar, syrup and oats and then add whatever takes your fancy. The idea for this batch evolved while I was in the middle of making it. Initially I was planning to add chocolate when, as I’m prone to do, I decided to throw in some chopped marzipan as well. After that my mind drifted to thoughts of buy cheap levitrabuy levitra onlineSimnel cake and the chocolate was forgotten, for now at least. Another favourite combination of mine is cherry and coconut.

Simnel Flapjack 3

The oats and the addition of the dried fruit offsets some of the unhealthiness of the high sugar content, although the same cannot be said for the marzipan. One big advantage I found with this recipe is that it gives the weight of the golden syrup instead of stating a number of tablespoons that reach into double digits. It’s impossible to remove all the syrup from the spoon anyway and by about six spoonfuls I’ve already lost count. This is so much more straightforward.

Simnel Flapjack 4

Simnel Flapjack 5

Simnel Flapjack (adapted from generic levitrageneric cialisLorraine Pascale’s flapjacks)

Ingredients

175g unsalted butter
175g light brown muscovado sugar
175g golden syrup
350g rolled oats
60g chopped marzipan
60g raisins
60g chopped dried apricots
60g mixed peel
1½ tsp mixed spice
Zest of one lemon

Method

1. Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F) and line a 20cm (8″) square tin with baking paper.

2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan and melt slowly. Once melted, use a pastry brush to coat the top of the baking paper with a little of the butter.

3. Add the sugar and syrup and heat on a low temperature until the sugar has dissolved.

4. Take off the heat and stir in the oats.

5. Allow the mix to cool a little before adding all of the other ingredients.

6. Pour into the tin and squash down – I used an offset palette knife but the back of a spoon would work too.

7. Bake for 30 minutes.

8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before slicing. Leave to cool fully before serving (if you can wait that long!).

Enjoy!

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A Wedding Blazer

Posted on March 25, 2013 by Laura

Wedding Blazer

We attended a family wedding the weekend before last. As I had made Rowan a blazer and trousers in plenty of time I was really keen to make a full outfit for Casper too. I had to scrap making the trousers in the end but I did just finish the blazer in time – at midnight the night before we had to leave. I was certainly very relieved to get it finished and to find that it fit too. There wasn’t really a back up plan. Most of these pictures were taken at home yesterday. Unfortunately it was far too cold on the day of the wedding (or yesterday) to stand around taking photos – the shot below was taken hastily before we headed for warmth. I can’t wait for the cold spell we’re having in the UK to end.

Wedding Blazer 2

The pattern is burda 9671 ‘Boys Sport Jacket and Trousers, which I bought here. I used a different blazer pattern to last time for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I wanted side panels as I’d like to experiment with adding side vents in the future. Secondly, this pattern has different pieces for the lining so it has an extra bit of give in it. There’s a pleat in the centre back and a rolled hem. All the extra pieces did make it more time consuming though. The welt pockets were my own addition and I followed the same tutorial as last time (found here and here). I postitioned them just at the bottom of the darts.

Wedding Blazer 3

I chose a fairly neutral colour so it will go with everything and hopefully get lots of wear. The fabric is Essex yarn dyed linen in black. It is so soft and has the most beautiful texture. I originally bought 1m from The Eternal Maker to sew a bag for me and got the rest that I needed from M is for Make. I’ve since bought even more and still plan to make the bag. Both of these places have great service and Kate from M is for Make was especially helpful as, after a problem with another order, I needed the fabric in a bit of a hurry. Once I’d started cutting the pieces out Casper told me that he liked all colours except for grey. Not really what I wanted to hear but it was too late to use anything else. Fortunately the Alphabetty in red lining and the rainbow dots I used for the pocket lining provide enough interest for him to like wearing it. The alphabet print (bought here) is from the Summersville collection by Lucie Summers for Moda, although a lot of it is out of print now. The rainbow dots fabric is by Fabric Freedom and is also out of print. It was one of the first fabrics I ever bought.

Wedding Blazer 4

The instructions didn’t really include detailed enough explanations, especially at certain points like the rolled hem. I did mostly follow the steps and made something up for the hem. I’ve since found out how to do it properly. I did vary one step to avoid hand stitching the hem – after joining the front facing to the lining I sewed the hem with right sides together. After that I turned the jacket (very slowly) through one of the sleeves, something I would definitely not repeat or advise. You can still avoid the hand stitching but turn it through a hole in one of the sleeve seams instead. Once I had finally pulled it through I sewed the sleeve hems by hand. I thought this was worth doing as it will make it easier to adjust the hem if I ever need to. Also, my stitches are not visible as the lining sleeve is shorter. Next time I make a blazer I’ll keep the difference in the finished lengths but make the lining sleeves longer so there is more flexibility to lower the hem if needed.

Wedding Blazer Collage

Despite the stress this blazer caused me I do love it. The final fit is great – I made it in a size 5 although normally I would adjust a pattern to use size 5 length with size 4 (or less) width. I could not be bothered this time though as there were so many pieces. It’s lucky I didn’t as he might have struggled to do the blazer up. I really like some of the details like the darts, the rolled seam on the collar and the shorter length of the lining sleeves. I definitely want to make another one but maybe not for a while.

Wedding Blazer 5

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Celebrate The Boy

Posted on March 4, 2013 by Laura

Two of my favourite sewing bloggers, Dana and Rae, are hosting the Celebrate The Boy series at the moment. They’ve shared some great tutorials already and there’s still another week to run. Since I started sewing almost everything I’ve made has been for my two boys. Some of these were before I started this blog so I thought I’d take a trip down memory lane and share these with you. I’ve been meaning to write this for ages but now seems like a perfect time. You see, it was discovering the ‘Celebrate The Boy’ series around two years ago that planted the seed and made me start thinking about learning to sew. Until then sewing was something I’d always tried to avoid after being put off when I sewed a shirt together while replacing a button. For some reason though having my boys to sew for inspired me and changed my mind.

This is what Casper and Rowan looked like back then. Casper was two and a half and Rowan was just 3 months old.

Boys in 2011

At the start of April 2011 my mum lent me her machine and gave me a lesson to get me started. I didn’t end up buying my own sewing machine until about a year later – luckily my mum didn’t mind. This meant that by the time I was ready to buy I knew what features I really wanted. The tablecloth below, made with Ikea fabric, was my first project. I’d recommend it for anyone who wants to learn as you’re basically just practising sewing in a straight line and hemming.

Tablecloth

Later that month I made some trousers for Rowan. The pattern was a free download but I can’t remember where from. I chose a totally inappropriate home decorating fabric because it had robots on it and I didn’t really know where to buy suitable fabric from yet.

Robot trousers

After that I made some more trousers for Rowan. I bought some quilting cotton (Robert Kaufman, Metro Circles) from Etsy and used the same pattern as before. This time I decided to add cuffs and thought it would mean they’d last longer. I sewed them on wrong so the seam allowance showed when they were folded up. I did end up learning the right way to do them though.

Circle trousers

Next I made some co-ordinating shorts for Casper. This wasn’t until July so I was hardly prolific but I tried to make sure I was learning something new with every project. I used Dana’s Retro Racer’s tutorial and adapted the ‘Basic Pocket Pants’ pattern from Growing Up Sew Liberated. Casper got so much use out of these and was still wearing them last summer. He’s bundling my mum in the photo below.

Retro Racer Pocket Shorts

In August I decided it was time to try sewing with knits. I had seen quite a few people making the Heidi & Finn Urban Hoodie and thought it was so cute. I used grey on the outside and a red and white star print for the lining, both from Fabricland. I also covered some buttons with the star print. It took me a long time to finish it and the buttonholes gave me a lot of trouble but I was so pleased with it. It’s since been passed onto Rowan and he should get a bit more use out of it yet. It’s an oldie but a hoodie.

Star Urban Hoodie

Then in September that year I started this blog. When I initially started I didn’t really expect to write that much about sewing. I thought I’d mostly talk about baking with a few sewing posts but as time went on I developed a bit of an obsession with sewing. I think over 50% of my posts are for sewing now.

Next I made this Number 3 appliqué T-shirt. I didn’t blog this and never actually sewed the 3 on. If I manage it by next year then Rowan will be able to use it. Casper refused to wear this for his birthday party but did wear it on his actual birthday.

No. 3 applique

I’ve written about almost everything I’ve made since then – you can see an overview at a quick glance on my Sewing page – but here’s a brief summary of all my boy projects with a new one down the bottom. You can click on each of the photos to go to the original post.

Pattern Testing Max Costume

Baby Sleeping Bag

Artist’s Palette Appliqué Tutorial

Santa Snood Tutorial

Li’l Heartbreaker Trousers

‘Oliver + S’ pyjamas

Kickin’ Back Trousers

Flashback Skinny Tee

Easy Linen Shirt

Treasure Pocket Pants

Stripey Jersey Jim Jams

Urban Duck Hoodie

‘Next Stop London’ Outfit

Branded Elastic Tutorial

Cycling Jersey Tutorial

Puppet Sleeves Tutorial

Cartoonify a soft toy tutorial

Monkey Bucket Hat

Baby in the Hood Jacket

Sleeves to Sweatpants

Ghetto Groundhog

Magician’s Hat T-shirt

Halloween PJs

The Tardy Cardi

Car Chic

Wearing his heart on his bum

 

Recently I’ve been sewing up a lot of these leggings with a bum panel because I’ve been developing my first pattern for release. The ‘Number One’ Leggings below were a present for my cousin’s son who just turned one.

Number One Leggings

The sizes range from newborn to age 4 and there will be a few different options – leggings or shorts, two cuff styles and two alternative waistbands to choose from. It’s very close to being ready for testing so watch out for a call for pattern testers soon. I’ve written about things I’ve made with this pattern here, here and here. I haven’t forgotten the free pattern for the 2 year old skinny trousers I mentioned recently in this post either – the pattern is all ready, I just need to write up the tutorial. I’ve also been taking a pattern cutting course at a local college so I have been very busy lately. I find it so fascinating and can’t wait to put into practice some of the new techniques I’ve learned, maybe even sew something for me finally.

So that’s pretty much everything I’ve ever sewn. There were a few unfinished projects along the way and I have a tendency to work on at least five projects at once because I get so excited about new ideas. Learning to sew is one of the best things I have ever done, and I’m still learning all the time. I never expected it to become such a big part of my life but I absolutely love it.

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Figgy’s Banyan Tee

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Laura

Hello there! It’s been pretty quiet here on the blog lately. I have been really busy lately though working on a few projects that I’m really excited about. Hopefully I’ll be able to share more about what I’ve been up to soon. Today I’m bringing home a post about the Banyan Tee pattern by Figgy’s that was originally featured over at the Village Haberdashery.

***

Nani Iro Banyan 1

I was inspired to learn to sew as I wanted to be able to make clothes for my two boys. This means that I am always on the look out for new boys patterns and as soon as I saw the Banyan Pattern I knew I had to have it. It’s full of some really stylish pieces and is suitable for girls as well, with a tunic version of the T-shirt too. I am a big fan of Shelly Figueroa, having made several patterns from the Sewing for Boys book that she co-authored with Karen Le Page. The patterns are well explained and easy to follow. The picture below shows a few of the things I’ve sewn from the book…

Sewing for Boys patterns

I have also been taking Shelly’s Kids Romper Revamp course for the Zephyr Romper and Sundress on Craftsy and she has so many great tips to share. The Banyan Pattern was actually designed by Shelly’s partner Daniela, a very talented designer of clothing and fabric. Figgy’s also allow you to sell clothing made from their patterns, as long as you sew in a Figgy’s woven label that you can purchase from their website.

Nani Iron Banyan 2

While I was buying the Banyan Pattern I decided to take a quick peek in the fabric section of Annie’s shop to see what knit fabrics she had. I immediately spotted this gorgeous Nani Iro Element Collage in Fog and couldn’t resist, it seemed to me that it was meant to be turned into a Banyan Tee. I love sewing with grey as it means the finished garment will go with everything. The silver metallic details, variation in colour and the randomness of the print make this quite an unusual grey fabric. It is a bit more pricey than I’d usually use for my children but I’d read so many good things about Nani Iro fabric and once I received it I could see why. It is unbelievably soft and beautiful to sew with.

I was a bit nervous working with ‘the precious’ fabric and always used a pressing cloth when ironing it but otherwise didn’t do anything else special. It does not curl up at all, making it a lot easier to work with than many jersey fabrics and I’d definitely buy it again. I bought 1.5m and managed to squeeze out two T-shirts with just a few scraps remaining. It would be great to use with as a contrasting feature fabric too, maybe just for the sleeves and the pocket.

Nani Iro Banyan Pattern and Pieces

The first thing I did when I opened the pattern was to compare the pattern pieces to one of Casper’s T-shirts that fits him well. I found that the pattern looked a bit wider and not quite as long. When you are comparing make sure to allow for seam allowances. Casper is just 4 but is fairly tall and quite slim. So I used the 2/3 pattern piece but lengthened it to between the 4/5 and 6/7 length. To do this I traced the pattern and marked the armpit point of the 2/3 size and the width of the 2/3 size but at my chosen length. I then drew a new line between the two. I wanted to make sure that this T-shirt would last quite a while and even went as far as making a muslin version in a cheaper jersey fabric.

Whenever I sew with knits I make sure to use a stretch or ballpoint needle and I also use my walking foot. I am lucky to have one built into my machine but they really help to get an even feed of both layers when you’re sewing a seam or hemming. The other thing to remember is to use a zig zag stitch – a medium length but narrow zig zag is recommended by Figgy’s and this works really well as it looks quite subtle but will ensure that you have stretch in your seams.

Nani Iro Banyan Collage

The fit is perfect and Casper is really happy with his new ultra soft T-shirt. To co-ordinate with the fabric I used silver metallic thread for top-stitching and hemming and I absolutely love it. I’ve got another one to sew up for my youngest and then I can’t wait to sew some of the fantastic trousers included in the pattern. I hope Figgy’s bring out more boy patterns in the future.

Thanks for having me today Annie!

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Gousto Giveaway

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Laura

I was recently contacted by Gousto to see if I would like to test one of their gourmet food bags. They are a relatively new London based company that deliver recipes and ingredients for complete meals to your door. Their recipes looked delicious and healthy as well as including some inventive combinations and unusual ingredients. I’ve been trying to eat a little more healthily since Christmas so this sounded ideal. The bag they provided included two meals that I was able to choose from a selection of ten and the options are updated every week. Half of the meals offered were suitable for vegetarians. I thought there was the right balance between having enough choice and not being overwhelmed.

Ras El Hanout Halloumi with Barberry Bulgur

Halloumi Ingredients

We absolutely loved this dish. It contained a couple of ingredients that I hadn’t heard of before such as barberries. The flavours were fantastic and I’d definitely like to make this again. Casper helped me to prepare many of the ingredients and I also learned a tip to remove ginger peel with a teaspoon. I bulked it out with some roasted peppers so we had enough to feed four of us but I didn’t need to.

Ras El Hanout Halloumi

South Indian Prawn Masala

This was also very tasty although my husband and I both felt it needed another vegetable with it but it would be easy for us to add that. The spice level was a little too hot for me but I still managed to finish it and the proportions were perfect for two people.

South Indian Prawn Masala Ingredients

Overall, I really liked the format of the recipes and the meals were easy to prepare with good quality, fresh and seasonal ingredients. It is a really convenient option to have when you’re busy but still want to be able to cook for yourself.

Recipe Card

Gousto provide a great service and I’m really pleased to be able to offer one of my readers in the UK the chance to test a Gousto Gourmet food bag for free. Also, any of my UK readers can use the discount code CRAFTSTORMING to get 25% off your first delivery.

The Prize

The winner gets to choose two two-person meals from our web page http://www.gousto.co.uk/this-weeks-recipes. The food box will be delivered the week after the meals are chosen.

Terms and conditions

  • In order to enter the competition, the entrant must subscribe to the Gousto newsletter as well as enter via Rafflecopter below. No cheating please the winning entry will by chosen by Rafflecopter using an online randomiser and will be cross checked to make sure the entrant has subscribed. The winner will be announced in Gousto’s weekly Newsletter.
  • This giveaway is open to all readers over 18 with a postal address in the UK. Gousto is unfortunately unable to deliver to the Scottish Islands, Channel Islands or Northern Ireland.
  • The giveaway closes on the 12th of February 2013.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Wearing his heart on his bum

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Laura

Wearing his heart on his bum

The theme for Project Run and Play this week is ‘Valentine’s Inspired Wear’. Initially I didn’t plan to join in the sew along as I was struggling to think of boy ideas. A few days ago I had a sudden flash of inspiration though and couldn’t resist, then once I got started the ideas kept on flowing. The problem was getting everything finished in time for the deadline.

Heart on his bum

I started with the leggings. Both fabrics are a knit interlock that I bought here. Casper has decided recently that he doesn’t like kisses so it was too tempting to cover these in kisses. I just drew these on randomly with a fabric pen once I’d cut the pattern pieces out. To up the ‘Valentine’s factor’ I added a constrasting panel with a big red heart appliqued on it.

Wearing his heart on his bum

Finally I added some of the lyrics from ‘All You Need is Love’ by The Beatles to customise the exposed elastic waistband. I used my digital cutter to cut out some vinyl and ironed it on. The pattern for the leggings is self-drafted.

Wearing his heart on his bum

Once the leggings were ready I really wanted to make a top to go with them. I haven’t made a full button-down shirt before so, in the spirit of learning new things with each project, I decided to go for it.

Arrow epaulette shirt

I really wanted to make it using knit fabric, so Casper can use it as a more casual shirt but can also dress it up a little. I stayed with the red and black colour scheme and used lots of pops of constrast top stitching on the collar, shoulders, placket and hems. My favourite part of the shirt is the arrow epaulettes with the black heart buttons. The arrows were pretty difficult to turn but worth the effort. I also wanted to add a couple of red welt pockets on the front and some red heart elbow patches but ran out of time.

Arrow epaulettes

I used a mash up of two patterns to get the look I wanted. The front, collar and placket are from the Sketchbook Shirt by Oliver + s in size 4 and the back is adapted from that pattern but I removed the yoke. For both the front and back I added 1″ on the bottom and also trimmed about 3/4″ off the sides. I then took the arms and armholes from the Flashback Skinny Tee Pattern in size 5. I got both fabrics from Fabricland and they were marked as ‘unknown content’. I think the black is an interlock and the red is a very thin jersey. I used lightweight non-stretch interfacing on all the red pieces and it worked really well. I sewed on five perfect buttonholes in a row this morning, which was a very pleasant surprise. The Oliver + s pattern instructions were really easy to follow and I’m looking forward to following it in full (with a yoke and sleeve plackets) with some woven fabric.

Wearing his heart on his bum collage

This is my second time taking part in the sew along and I really like the way it’s inspired me to try looks that I would not have thought of otherwise and also pushed me to turn something around quickly. I also love seeing what everyone else has made.

Wearing his heart on his bum collage

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Car Chic

Posted on January 24, 2013 by Laura

Car Chic

It is Boy Week this week over at Project Run & Play. I love following it each season and I’ve wanted to join in with the sew along since I first found out about the competition. Finally I’ve managed it. Every week is boy week round this way so it seemed like the best week to aim for when the themes were announced.

I had hoped to finish the blazer in time for Rowan’s birthday at the start of the month but, for various reasons, didn’t quite manage it. We have a couple of weddings coming up soon though so I decided to make some co-ordinated trousers to finish the outfit and he should get a lot of wear out of both items. Rowan is absolutely obsessed with cars at the moment. The first thing he says when he gets up in the morning is “play cars” and he spends quite a lot of time each day making traffic jams.

Fabric

I bought the main fabric for the blazer – Trefle Cars Pin Cord from Kokka – back in September after visiting my nearest decent fabric shop, The Eternal Maker. It’s about an hour from me and when I got there I was a bit overwhelmed by all the choice and didn’t end up buying anything. I’d noticed this lovely cord while I was there though and ordered it a few days later. It is so so soft and was wonderful to sew with. The last time I sewed with cord I used a cheap one from Fabric Land and it was anything but lovely. I bought the contrast navy pin cord (also used for the trousers) and the polka dot poplin for the lining from my local John Lewis. The other car print was also from The Eternal Maker but I can’t find it on their site and don’t know the name of it.

Blazer Pattern

Car Chic Blazer

The pattern is The Basic Blazer from Blank Slate Patterns. I first purchased this when it was the Toddler Blazer pattern last March – that’s how long I’ve been planning to make one. I’m so glad I finally did and already have plans for another one for my eldest. I did a few things differently to the instructions in the pattern;

  • Cut the back on the fold. I made a muslin and it looked like the fit might be a little bit small on Rowan so this gave an extra inch on the back. In fact he probably didn’t need it but it does mean the blazer can be worn over a lightweight jumper so he’ll probably get more wear out of it.
  • Added an inch to the middle of the collar pieces to match the extra inch on the back and clipped into the seam allowance after basting the collar to the jacket
  • Added elbow patches in the contrasting navy cord. Unfortunately, despite referring to Kristin’s great tutorial and measuring several times on the lining I got the placement a bit too high and they’re more like tricep patches. The main problem is that Rowan just won’t keep still. Also he didn’t like the frayed edges on the lining and would keep pulling on them so I didn’t like to keep it on too long. I was so tempted to redo them but just resisted.
  • Used tutorials from this blog for the double welt pockets (this one and this one), adjusting the measurements for the pattern’s pocket size. This means you don’t need to top stitch around the pockets if you prefer not to. I used the contrast navy cord for the welts and underwelt and then added a different car print for the pocket bags.
  • Used this tutorial to line the jacket, which results in turning the jacket through an opening in one of the lining sleeves. After sewing up the sides and collar I turned and pressed the top and bottom of the lapels before turning back inside to sew the bottom seam.

Car Chic Blazer Features

I thought the car fabric would make this a definite win but it took a few attempts before Rowan would even wear it. I feared that all the time would be wasted but fortunately he’s very happy to wear it now.

Car Chic Collage

Trousers Pattern

Car Chic

The trousers are made from my own pattern. It is for a 2 year old and I’m working on getting a free pattern available and tutorial written up soon. The main features are;

  • Skinny fit
  • Separate yokes on the back
  • Patch pockets on the front, cut on the bias – lined with the same car fabric as the welt pockets on the blazer
  • A faux fly with a non working button and buttonhole on the waistband. I used the trefle car fabric to cover the button with. I plan to try a zip fly for the next pair.
  • A waistband facing that uses the same car fabric as the welt pockets
  • An elasticated waistband that goes 3/4 around with a flat front. The buttonhole elastic feeds through two buttonholes and is held in place with two buttons attached to the facing.
  • Top stitched seams using silver metallic thread
  • A personalised label with a picture of Rowan on it. I got this fabric printed from Spoonflower, originally used it for this project and have a little bit left to make labels with.

Car Chic Trousers Collage

When I first started sewing I would push myself to learn something with every new project but I had become a bit lazy about doing that recently. I am definitely bringing that back again this year and certainly learned a lot making both the blazer and the trousers. Overall I’m really pleased with how the outfit turned out and both garments work well today and as separates. Rowan just needs a co-ordinating bow tie and a shirt and he’ll be ready for the wedding. Now I need to make something for my other boy.

Car Chic

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The Tardy Cardi

Posted on January 13, 2013 by Laura

Tardy cardi

This cardigan was the last thing I made during KCWC last October. I finished everything except the buttonholes on day 7. As I didn’t finish it until late in the evening I decided to save those for another day. It turned out to be a wise decision as I had a bit of a nightmare with the last two buttonholes. The seam for the bottom ribbing caused problems with my buttonhole foot and they kept ending up the wrong size. In the end I got bored of unpicking and finished them off manually about two weeks after KCWC. It’s taken until now for me to get around to taking photos.

Tardy cardi

The pattern is the Darling Cardigan by Owly Baby. It was just the sort of weight that Casper needed – a lightweight extra layer for Autumn days – until about a day after I finished it when he started needing warmer jumpers. As Casper is quite tall for his age I used the size 4 with the length of size 5 for both the body and sleeves. The fit is great except for the bottom band, which is my fault for cutting the ribbing about two inches too short. It was my last piece of navy ribbing so I just had to stick with it. I widened the ribbing for the button plackets and neckline but I can’t remember what measurement I used. I also found I got a lot of shifting in the sections where you don’t stretch the ribbing so ended up interfacing both sides of the ribbing there, rather than just one side as recommended in the pattern. I really like the pattern and definitely want to make more of them in time for Spring.

The fabric is from a thrifted men’s XL T-shirt that cost £4. It was a bit of a jigsaw puzzle to get all of the pattern pieces to fit but I got there in the end. It is cream with narrow navy stripes, so I chose co-ordinating navy ribbing. I always have so much trouble choosing buttons and was tempted to go with something unexpected but stuck with navy ones with white stripes.

Tardy cardi

It’s not easy to get Casper to pose for photos at the moment. The only way to persuade him is to suggest he takes photos on his own camera at the same time using the timer. This leads to some odd expressions and poses and lots of time waiting for him to reset his camera, but at least he enjoys it this way.

Tardy cardy

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A Mini Work of Art

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Laura

Mini Work of Art 1

Hello! I hope you all had a lovely break. We had a fantastic Christmas – Casper was extremely excited and it was the first year that Rowan could really participate even though he doesn’t quite understand what’s going on yet. Last weekend we also celebrated Rowan’s second birthday. Rowan is a typical car obsessed boy and has a particular love for Minis, pointing them out to me whenever we go out and telling me what colour they are. I’ve wanted to make something like this for him for a while and his birthday gave me the push to get it finished.

Mini Work of Art 2

I bought the box frame from Ikea ages ago and picked up this set of textured cardstock from Hobbycraft last week. I’ve seen a few versions of this done with hearts and butterflies. I created the cutting file in Inkscape and used my Black Cat Lynx to cut out each of the shapes. They are 4cm wide – I did want them to be a bit smaller so I could fit four to a row but I was having a few issues with cutting out the details. This cardstock is quite thick and I think I need to replace my blade. It did take a while as I decided to cut each one a different colour. I also used it to cut out the backing and then arranged the minis evenly, leaving 2.5cm around the edges. They are stuck on with mini foam adhesive pads, which add a bit of dimension.

Mini Work of Art 3

This could be adapted so many ways with different shapes or types of card. I’ve seen people use paint chip cards for smaller shapes too. You could also add your design to the front of a folded piece of card for a frameable birthday card. Even if you don’t have a digital cutter you could cut the shapes out with a craft knife or use a punch. Pick the right combination and they’d make great presents for adults or children.

Mini Work of Art 4

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Chocolate Christmas Pudding Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Laura

Chocolate Christmas Pud Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich 1

Well this is my last post for the ‘A Very Cookie Christmas’ series. My final cookie is a fantastic alternative to Christmas Pudding for the big day, though the ice cream does still contain crumbled up pieces of Christmas Pudding. I have never been especially keen on the traditional offering on Christmas Day and would much prefer this chewy chocolate cookie with a beautifully spiced chocolate and Christmas Pudding ice cream. The spices really lift the rich chocolate ice cream to something special while the brandy infused Christmas Pudding adds texture and another layer of flavour. You can decorate however to look like a Christmas Pudding or just leaving them unadorned, either way they taste fantastic.

Chocolate Christmas Pud Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich 2

At the start this year I placed a self-imposed ban on buying new cookery books in an attempt to contol my ever-growing collection. I have mostly managed to stick to this but one that I couldn’t resist was ‘The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook’ by Lindsay Landis of Love and Olive Oil. It just spoke to me and there are so many recipes I want to try – Cookie Dough Waffles, Cookie Dough Creme Brulee, Cookie Dough Filled Crepes – I’ll stop there as I could list every recipe in the book. The cookie I used for this sandwich was adapted from Linday’s ‘Old-Fashioned Cookie Dough Ice Cream Sandwiches’. The ice cream was a combination of Jamie Oliver’s Chocolate Ice Cream and this Christmas Pudding Ice Cream, with some brandy infused Christmas Pudding thrown in for good measure.

Chocolate Christmas Pudding Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich 1

I hope you’ve enjoyed all of the cookies Abby and I have shared with you throughout the month. I’d love to hear from you if you try out any of the recipes. I’ll be taking a break for a week now to spend some time with my family. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, I’ll see you in 2013!

Chocolate Christmas Pudding Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich {Click for printable recipe}

Chocolate, Ginger and Cinnamon Cookies (adapted from cookie recipe from ‘Old Fashioned Cookie Dough Ice Cream Sandwiches’ in ‘The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook’ by Lindsay Landis’)

Ingredients

113g vegetable shortening (Trex)
250g light brown sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
60g dark cocoa powder, sifted
½ teaspoon instant espresso powder
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
220g plain flour, sifted

Makes around 18 cookies for 9 sandwiches

Method

1. Pre-heat your oven to 170°C. Prepare two or three baking sheets with baking paper.

2. In a large mixing bowl beat together the shortening and sugar with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes.

3. Add the baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, espresso powder, ground ginger, ground cinnamon and vanilla extract. Mix again until combined.

4. Mix in half the flour and 2 tablespoons of water.

5. Mix the rest of the flour and 2 or 3 tablespoons of water. The dough should be well combined and soft but not sticky.

6. Roll the dough out between two pieces of baking paper until the dough is about 5mm thick. Use a circular cookie cutter (mine was 78mm diameter) to cut out cookies. Transfer the cookies to a baking sheet. Re-roll any scraps until you have used it all up.

7. Place the baking sheets in the freezer for 10 minutes or the fridge for at least one hour. The longer you leave them the less they will spread.
8. Bake for around 7 or 8 minutes until the cookies have just set. Don’t overbake them.

9. Remove from the oven. While the cookies were still warm I used my cookie cutter to cut them out again as they had spread a little. Allow to cool.

10. Keep in the fridge or freeze until you are ready to use them.

Chocolate Christmas Pudding Ice Cream

Ingredients

2 cinnamon sticks, snapped in half
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon caraway seeds
4 cloves
300ml full-fat milk
100g dark chocolate
3 large egg yolks
100g caster sugar
300ml double cream
250g Christmas Pudding
2 tablespoons brandy

Method

1. Prepare a large baking pan by lining with foil or baking paper.

2. Crumble the Christmas Pudding and place in a bowl. Pour the brandy over and leave covered.

3. Place the cinnamon sticks, ground ginger, nutmeg, caraway seeds, cloves, milk and chocolate in a saucepan. Bring to the boil slowly and stir to mix in the chocolate. Take off the heat once it starts to boil.

4. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until pale and thick. Slowly pour the hot milk mix over the top, whisking all the time. Pour it all back into the saucepan.

5. Place on a low heat and cook gently, stirring all the time. The custard is ready when it is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.

6. Allow to cool completely, ideally over night in the fridge to allow the flavours to infuse fully.

7. Whisk the double cream until it forms soft peaks. Pour the custard through a sieve and fold the cream into it.

8. Churn in an ice cream maker until it is frozen.

9. Stir in the brandy infused Christmas Pudding and pour into the prepared baking pan.

10. Freeze until firm.

11. To assemble, remove the ice cream from the freezer and lift out of the pan using the foil.

12. Use the same cookie cutter as for the cookies to cut out the ice cream. Place between two cookies and freeze the sandwiches.

13. Decorate if you wish and serve.

Enjoy!

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Posted in Baking, Chocolate | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments