thought sixteen: date basket

My husband is turning 29 in a few days and I was racking my brain trying to work out what to get him. When I asked my friends they said things like "I buy my man shirts or smells" but I've done that a few years in a row now.

I was also looking at my fairly empty wallet thinking, "the budget's just not stretching so far" so what can you do on a small budget for the man that has everything?

A Date Basket. I just love the idea of 'dating' your husband. My husband and I love going on dates, so I thought this was perfect.

Pinterest is the source of all my creativity these days (ask my friends, I may as well work for these people I advertise them enough!) I was scanning the pins for ideas and I came across the date night jar from lifeinthegreenhouse blog. So I created my own with a few different twists and ideas.

What you need:

- A basket or box (something that you can keep all your envelopes and goodies in)
- Envelopes (size is up to you, I went for about A5)
- Bows and trimmings to decorate
- Goodies to add (like chocolates or beer)
- Date ideas
- Pictures or things that go with the date
- Money (So he doesn't feel like he's paying!)

I started with my basket and wrapped a bow around it that I made out of scrap material I had lying around.

I then sat down and thought about what kind of dates I would like to put in it. I came up with 10 but you can come up with as many as you like. Some people like to do it by month but I liked the idea of letting him choose his own.

I picked some photos or pictures that went along with the kind of date. For example, one date was a movie night at home. So I included a packet of popcorn, a picture of Blockbuster, a £5 note and a little note that said "Let's have a relaxing night at home, cuddling on the couch watching a movie of your choice." 

Then I put all the bits and pieces into the envelopes, stuffed some of his favourite chocolates in the basket as well. Hope he loves it!

The finished product.

thought fifteen: my new machine

Sewing runs in my family. My Mother sews, her Mother sews, her Mother sewed and I think it continues throughout the history of my female family. My Mum made my wedding dress, her Mum made her wedding dress...

You get it.

And then there's me. I have never sewn anything (well) in my whole life and if I have a daughter I'm scared that the tradition will sadly end with me. So, for my 24th birthday I asked my Mum for my first ever sewing machine. A lovely Janome 2070. I went to the little Beccles store and picked it up having absolutely no idea what to do with it (but still very excited).

My Mum came to visit from Brussels and I thought that a great way for us to have mother-daughter time would be over the new machine.

So this is what we made

Because this wasn't so bad my sewing confidence soared and now I want to share with you what else I have created.

The Simple Maxi Dress

Take a t-shirt or tank top and cut it approximately 15 inches from the shoulder (it will depend on how tall you are, it should come to about your high waist).

Unfold your fabric and wrap it 1 and 1/2 times around your waist where you want the skirt part of the dress to start. cut off the remaining fabric. 

Fold your fabric and pin together (right sides together).

Sew together.

It should become a big, looped skirt like this.

This is the bit I found tricky. You will need Elastic thread (I got mine from a local shop for 50p, so not too bad). You need to have a normal cotton thread on the top and the elastic thread on your bobbin (it took me quite a while to get my elastic thread to pull through, but it's a matter of patience and skill. Neither of which I have a lot of). 

Make sure your machine is set to a long stitch and sew. The fabric will start to bunch, that's great.

It should look something like this!

(I'm sorry that I didn't take a very good photo of this step) Place the t-shirt into the skirt at the sewn end (right sides out and sleeves first). Pin together and sew still leaving the elastic thread on the bobbin.

To made the sash (that hides the raw sewing) take some left over fabric (or another print if you like) and fold right sides together and sew leaving one end open. Take a wooden spoon and push the sash inside out. 

Hem the bottom and you're done!

This is how the skirt turned out.

I didn't want to take a photo with me in it because I wasn't looking so great. But you get the idea! In this picture the skirt is much lower than it is on, because the weight of the fabric is pulling the elasticity of the top. But not bad for someone who can't sew!

Thanks Pinterest and http://asmallsnippet.blogspot.co.uk

thought fourteen: cookies

Now, I love baking. I might not be amazing at it, but I do really enjoy it. It's funny because when I lived at home I wouldn't set foot in the kitchen but now I have my own I love it! I don't bake a lot because my husband thinks I'll just eat too much (he's probably right there)

I have made many cupcakes, pavlovas, cakes and desserts but now I have finally tried cookies.

It all started when a lady came up to me at church and said "So what are you doing for the auction of talents?" I had absolutely no idea what she was talking about so she explained that church was trying to raise some money by auctioning peoples talents.

Talent. I'm not sure I have a load of useful talents. I suggested that I could bake something but I had no idea what. Next Sunday I came to church and noticed that my name was on the list for baking "an assortment of homemade cookies". Well, I'd never made them before! What on earth was I going to do!

I searched through my recipe books and found a page on shortbread that I thought looked amazing. I gave them a test run a few days early and it was a complete disaster. My cute little mocha shortbreads had melted into one mound of bitter, buttery mess.

Crisis. I needed to make cookies by Saturday (this was now Thursday evening) and I had no idea what to do!

Then I found an amazing recipe for

Chocolate Chunk and Raspberry Cookies.

Ingredients:
125g softened butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 cup plain flour
1/4 cup self-raising flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp baking soda
90g dark eating chocolate chopped coarsely
125g frozen raspberries

Method:
1   Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line baking trays with baking paper.
2  Beat butter, sugar, egg and extract in a small bowl with electric mixer until combined. Stir in sifted flours, cocoa and soda, in two batches, then stir in chocolate and raspberries.
3   Drop tablespoons of mixture about 5cm apart onto trays, flatten slightly. Bake cookies about 12 minutes. Stand cookies on trays 5mins before transferring to wire rack to cool.

prep + cook time 35mins makes 24

thought thirteen: hair

I've mentioned it before
             I have bird hair.

You know the kind of hair that is thin and straggly, a bit ugly and you can't really do anything with it.
Hair fashion at the moment is long, flowing, messy buns and braids. You can't do any of that with the hair that I have.

I was the kind of baby that was dressed in lovely 'girly' clothes with big pink bows on my head. You might think "ohh, that's cute" but really, the reason was because I had no hair till I was 3 years old! Can you believe it! I was one of those babies you couldn't tell if it was a boy or a girl. I have early school photos and my hair is so thin it struggled to clip to the side.

So this is my hair dilemma.

But then came Pinterest.
It inspired the hair sock (see thought six)
And now I tried this up do:

1. Put your hair into a ponytail
2. Create a small gap between your pony and your head
3. Flip the hair through
4. Grab the rest of the hair and tuck it under
5. Pin the straggly bits and add a flower or other accessory.

Thank you Pinterest.

P.S. This is how mine turned out (I have short hair so it wasn't quite as impressive)

thought twelve: best thing since sliced bread.

Bread. I have always wanted a bread maker but can never justify the amount of bread I would eat. I would be massive! 


But there is nothing better than the smell of freshly baked bread in the house. 
Biting into a lovely, warm freshly baked roll. 
The satisfaction of having made something so wonderful and tasty.


So, I baked some bread. 


I am definitely NOT a morning person (ask my husband, he will back me up on that one) but for some reason the thought of fresh bread enticed me out of my warm bed yesterday morning. I mixed up the dough the evening before and then jumped out of bed at 5:45am to roll them out and pop them in the oven before work. 


It's a Swedish recipe so I have translated the ingredients and method and popped it up here.


Pumpkin Seed Rye Bread Rolls
Makes 8-10 small rolls
15-20mins cooking time             overnight proving + 30mins prep


Ingredients


3-5g yeast (I used dry yeast but I think you can use either)
3 cups cold water
3 cups sifted rye flour
3 and half cups bread flour
1 and half teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon honey or syrup (light or dark)
sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds or for decoration


Method


Dough (night before):
Pour the water into a large mixing bowl. Mix the dry ingredients in a separate bowl (including the yeast but not the seeds) and then add the honey. Add the dry ingredients to the water and mix around thoroughly. The dough should be loose but not runny. Add more bread flour if needed. Leave it to prove overnight covered with a tea towel at room temperature.


Next Morning:
Pour the dough onto a floured surface and form a long, narrow baguette. If the dough is really loose and doesn't keep its shape, roll it in flour to make it a little firmer. Brush with water and sprinkle with desired decorations. Let it rise on the table without cover about 30 minutes.

Turn the oven to 250-275 degrees (some ovens only go to 250 degrees). Place a baking tray in the middle of your oven to preheat. 

Then, divide the bread into about 5 cm long pieces, put them on baking paper on a cutting board, remove the hot tray from the oven and quickly transfer the loaves on the sheet. Bake in middle of oven about 15 - 20 min. 

Check that they have a nice golden brown colour. Let them cool on a rack slightly and serve warm. Enjoy!

thought eleven: Pinterest revisited

I wrote (a few thoughts ago) that Pinterest was a nice idea but that it was all creativity from behind a computer screen. I challenged myself to actually make/try the things I've found.

Here are just a few of the things I have tried so far.

my microwave cake in a mug.

This was surprisingly easy and tasted absolutely amazing! I totally recommend this to anyone who just wants an easy dessert after an evening meal.

my place names.

Again, seriously simple. Just cut out a template, trace and cut. Write out the names and stick it in your fork!

my microwave chips.

A bit hit and miss on the chip front. I tried salt and vinegar, but they just tasted like the salt ones. But I was surprised how crispy they were. 

my sock bun.

I loved it at first. But I find it hard to hide the sock, so I don't often wear it.

latest addition: my weekly board (with handy whiteboard marker to write on the glass!)

I love this so much! It is such a basic idea yet it works so well! I was hesitant about the whiteboard marker because I heard it wouldn't be as strong as a wet erase marker, but it works just fine and is much cheaper! My husband and I always use it and it's a great way to remember what's coming up that week.

If you want any hints on any of these ideas, please just ask!

thought ten: chocolate

You know those days when you come home from a pretty rubbish day at work, you're feeling a bit low and then BOOM a sudden urge for something chocolatey hits you in the face.

Well that was me today. 

I searched my cupboards. nothing.

I looked through the draws. nothing.

I emptied the contents of my bag. nothing.

I even raided the youth group basket of goodies. nothing.

But then, when I thought all hope was gone, I went to Pinterest. And gosh have I found the solution!

Microwave Chocolate and Caramel Mug Cake

The ingredients were all just normal cupboard things and it takes no more than 5 minutes to make.

Salted Caramel Mug Cake
What you’ll need: {makes 1 mug cake}
4 tablespoons all purpose flour
4 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg – beaten
3 tablespoons skim milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 salted caramels

What to do: 
1. Into a small bowl add: flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, salt, egg, milk, and vegetable oil. Mix to combine.

2. Pour mixture into a regular sized coffee mug. Drop caramels into center of mixture one at a time.

3. Microwave on high for one minute and 30 seconds. If needed {if cake batter is still gooey}, microwave on high for up to an additional 30 seconds.

{Recipe thanks to: http://blogs.babble.com}

This is how mine turned out.