Happy Birthday - Let's rock!

Let the music rock on....a birthday card for a special son who loves his music and does DJ-ing as a sideline.

A very simple design and I would have loved a little more time to play.  The base card was black cardstock highlighted with the music theme DSP purchased locally, some black grosgrain ribbon with the beautiful spellbinder die made from some at home rusty red cardstock, then the cirle and scallop necessability cutouts were added with a dimension and of course a couple of black adhesive pearls to help balance it all out.

I jazzed up the back flap of the envelope with the DSP. Just place a little glue to hold paper on flap and then trim around.  Really makes a difference.  Another idea I've tried is to run the envelope flap through my bigshot placing the flap in an embossing folder, now that really does look nice!

Another alternative design to the above would be to do a card around the 10 or 12 cm square, just play around with sizing to see what suits you.  Place the DSP on two-thirds of the front and place a series of scor lines on the black cardstock at the bottom.  Attach your ribbon and centre pieces.  This way I think the card would be more balanced and it would soften the starkness of the white background of the DSP.  What do you think....would love to hear your ideas?

Thanks for stopping by....take care and keep smiling...regards, Ann

Happy Father's Day

Oh how good if feels to make a card after what feels like such a long time.

It's an exciting time for DH and me as our eldest son is celebrating his first Father's Day on Sunday. The cards are made using the SU Build-A-Roo stamp set which I love. The text on Mark's card (right) was done in MS Publisher using the WordArt feature.  I had intended typing Happy First Father's Day but didn't want to take the limelight away from his partner Amy.  My hubby's card uses one of the arched quote stamps - the set comes with a great assortment of extra stamps for versatility.

The colour of the cards is real red with a textured grey cardstock; I'm disappointed with the photo though as they look more orange than red, but believe me the colour combo looks great - zoom in on them and they'll almost jump out at you!

I stamped the image twice using Staz On Jet Black which always gives a crisp result, and then glued the top roo on but left the hands, ears, nose and tail end free.  The hearts are stamped onto real red and then snipped out and adhered with a SU dimension and then the finishing touches of the self adhesive red kaiser pearl and stay put bow - this link will show you a great tutorial on the stay put bow http://wannastamp.blogspot.com/2007/11/stay-put-bow-video-and-blog-candy.html

Thanks for taking a peep and I hope your Father's Day is a memorable one.....Take care and keep smiling, Ann

Lamb Shank & Vegetable Soup

Another quick but delicious recipe.  It is a full bodied soup that is just wonderful for those cooler winter nights or ideal for a weekend when you want a little more time for you.  I made mine on low in the slow cooker which made it so simple.  Just prepare and press the button. 

Ingredients (serves 6)

4 lamb shanks, french trimmed
3 celery sticks, trimmed, cut into 1cm pieces
2 medium carrots, peeled, cut into 1 cm pieces
1 (about 300g) swede, peeled, cut into 1cm pieces
1 (about 160g) parsnip, peeled, cut into 1cm cubes
2 x 420g cans condensed tomato soup
1.5L (6 cups) cold water
1/3 cup loosely packed coarsely chopped fresh parsley
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Combine lamb shanks, celery, carrot, swede, parsnip, tomato soup and water in a large saucepan over high heat and bring to the boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 2-1/4 hours or until lamb is tender and falling away from the bone.

Remove from heat and stir in parsley.  Use tongs to remove the bones.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.  Ladle soup into bowls and serve with crusty bread, if desired. 

If you can't get the french trimmed shanks use untrimmed but you will find there will be more fat in the soup.  You can let it stand overnight if preferred and then scoup this off.  I serve it with a sliced turkish loaf topped with grated parmesan cheese which has been lightly grilled.  Bon Appetite!

Home made oven-baked muesli - yummo!

Gosh where has the time gone....my apologies but life has been a bit hectic, as it is for us all at times.  I haven't made a card in what seems like months; actually bought one the other day for my son's birthday.  I must have enough pretties to make enough cards for family and friends for the next 20 years! LOL ...  I have been spoiling myself with some special purchases from the US to add to my ever growing stash so keep posted...oh how I love to see a parcel on the doorstep when I arrive home.

Spring can't come quick enough for me; the flowers are blooming, birds chirping happily, the air gets warmer, clothing layers can be lessened after being hidden under cozy wool sweaters and jeans for months and months, and there's a certain excitement in the air and of course daylight saving....I just love that extra hour after work. 

I have been wanting to convert more into using homemade cleaning products and to see if they worked as well as the ones I buy with all the chemicals.  I had a go at making my own washing powder - super easy - and yes it does work.  I used vinegar as my softener and the towels were lovely and soft.  Oh how I wish I'd known about this when my children were young - I would have saved thousands!  I got the recipe from 'Down to Earth' which is here http://down---to---earth.blogspot.com/2007/08/various-recipes-for-green-cleaning.html.  The silver cleaning with the aluminium foil is amazing too.  I also use vinegar in my mop bucket now in place of purchased floor cleaner.  I also would love to have a go at homemade soap, so that's on the list of projects as well.  I've joined a couple of beginner knitting classes at Jellywares on Marshall recently; a great shop to call into and you can always be assured of a warm welcome from the owner Jodie.  I persevered  and made my first hat, for my granddaughter Millie who is presently holidaying in NZ with her parents.  I'll add some photos when they arrive home.  The pattern came from the book at the side of my blog called Baby Beanies and was a great one to start with first.

Anyway enough rambling on....I have a couple of  favourite recipes to share with you because I have been feeling guilty about neglecting my blog.  We enjoy this muesli each morning with a big dollop of vanilla yogurt.  It is delicious and very filling. We have been eating it for a few months now and still look forward to its scrumptious taste and knowing that we are eating a bowl full of healthy goodness.

Basic Recipe:  Makes 5-1/2 cups

1/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon finely grated orange rind
1/3 cup orange juice
2 cups traditional rolled oats
1/2 cup bran cereal
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup sultanas
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots

**I triple the recipe, add almonds, flax seeds (linseed) and two or three extra cups of oats.  This makes three large jars which store very well and gives us a good supply for a couple of months.  I don't always put in the orange rind but when I do you can taste a hint of citrus flavour.

Method:

Preheat oven to 200 deg C/180 deg C fan forced.  Line a large, shallow baking dish with baking paper.  Place honey, orange rind and orange juice in a saucepan over medium low heat.  Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until honey has melted.

Combine oats, cereal, coconut, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds in a large bowl.  Add honey mixture.  Toss to combine.  Spread mixture into prepared dish.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and crisp.  Cool on tray.  Add sultanas and apricots.  Stir to combine.  Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

If you are looking for a healthy and filling breaky I urge you to give this a try and adapt it to your own tastes. We love nuts so it suits us. It takes a little bit of time initially but is worth it.  I use a pair of metal salad spoon/fork to toss it when baking so I get an even colour.  If you like your muesli a little soft don't cook it for very long - if you like it crunchy like me then cook for a little longer.  Try a bit as you are cooking.  After a few tries you will know exactly how long to cook it.   I have two large bowls - one filled with the pre-cooked muesli and the other to tip the cooked muesli in so I can reuse the tray for the next batch.  Your house will smell of hone for a day or so once you have made it.

Enjoy and I'd love to know what you think!  I have found a similar recipe that you make into a muesli bar so when time permits will have a go at this also.

Crochet 'Stuart' Tartan Rug

Just a little bit of a diversion from cards.....I've been wanting to try one of these crochet tartan rugs for years and finally made the time to have a go with the cooler weather.  My 'grandmother-in-law' had one that I always admired sitting on the end of the spare bed.  The book is on the right of my blog.  It was a great project and the midnight oil was burnt on quite a few occasions when DH was away with work, but it looks fabulous and sits proudly on the back of our loungeroom chair.  It took me longer than I originally thought to complete - being a simple design I thought "Oh I'll wiz through this...no worries", but I have learnt patience over the years. The rug is very simple to make and so very warm due to the threaded chain through the lattice style design.  Just a tip though, when making your chain lengths, measure them with a tape measure and not by number of chain.  I made this mistake and most of mine were too short, needless to say I had a lot of joins and ends to darn in...grrr....we all learn from experience!  I started with a green chain length which was the right length and continued to do the same number of chains with each of the other 129!  not realizing that my tension at times was a little different and also the wool at times was a little thinner in spots than in other parts and also with other colours used, hence most of my chains were different lengths.....oh well that's life.....I've made one and will definitely make another in coming years as there are so many beautiful patterns and colour combinations and I really like the ones with the light blue in them too.  I have had the wool for this one  for over 4 years so needed to use it first.  Hope you like it and it inspires you to have a go.  It has been cold in our part of the

world so if your neck of the woods is the same I hope you're keeping warm and making the most of each day.  Take care and keep smiling.....Ann

I've been asked how I stopped the woven chains from pulling out - I hope this additional photo helps to explain. Once I had completed the rug, inclusive of threading the chains I cut my lengths of fringe in the various colours. I inserted my hook through the loop at the end of the rug as well as through the end stitch (chain) of the woven chain, I pulled through the 'halved fringe' with my crochet hook and then pulled the tail through the loop thus securing it by pulling the fringe through and finishing off.  I hope this makes sense.  I would love to see any finished projects.

Happy Birthday to you!

 

A birthday card for DH!...Just love this stamp set and especially the little 'love flower' which has become another favourite of mine.  As I was fingering through my cardstock collection my fingers kept backtracking to this beautiful buttery yellow card which has a slightly lined texture to it if you zoom in; I so wanted to use it.  I wasn't out for a lot of colour and wanted to keep the card simple but get the message through.  The staz on black ink was a perfect choice to give the images the crispness to detail they deserved.  A quick snip around and the little cute squares were gently adhered with a SU dimension.  Addition of the sentitment and a few accessories and there you go!

As the card developed and finally came to an end it took me a while to decide whether or not I liked it.  At first I thought it looked a bit drab and lacking life, but the more I looked at it close up, from a distance and overnight, I have decided that I now love it and am very happy with the finished result do you do that? I hope you like the photo it was an experiment to try and make my images more interesting.

RECIPE:
Stamps:  Dreams du Jour set
Paper:  SU basic black, at-home:  buttery yellow and rustic textured cardstock.
Ink: Staz on black - TIP:  adhere a small glue dot to the top of the clear cover (between the staz on lid and clear cover) and the clear cover will pop off with the main lid every time.  Stops inky fingers!
Accessories:  12 mm black grosgrain ribbon
Tools:  Paper piercing tool for corners
Card size:  15 x 10.5 cm