An ordinary life

Last sunday hopped on the train for a wonderful trip to Columbia Road Market.
There is a gorgeous vintage shop and tea room at the start of Columbia Road,
with desirable vintage linens and vintage china.

As I was lucky enough to be staying the night, so I could not take advantage of
the amazing flowers and shrubs, Next time !

Discovered this great fabric and haberdashery shop

Beyond - Fabrics, well worth a look.

Leaving the market behind we headed around the corner to the Geffrye Museum
It is set in a former almshouse of the Ironmongers' Company.  For the home lover
the museum explores the past 400 years from 1600 to the present day.

The focus is on the living rooms of the urban middle classes in England,
particularly in London.

The Museum aims to show how homes have been used and furnished over
this period, reflecting changes in society and patterns of behaviour as well as
style, fashion and taste. An added bonus ! It's Free entry.  Behind the houses
hidden from view is an amazing walled garden.

yummy cakes

I made these yummy cakes from the Humming Bird Cook Book which I was
lucky enough to get for my birthday back in the summer.

If you like upside down pineapple or peach cake I would recommend these
peaches and cream cup cakes, they were very simple to make using tinned
peaches. When you bite into the cake you get a lovely mouth full of peach.
I have also really enjoyed the red velvet cupcakes, the white chocolate and
pecan nut cookies,and the apple pie.  Can't wait to try the raspberry cheese
cake brownie.

                I used the recommended amount of frosting

            but a little less would have been a better 

             balance.    For all the lucky people living

  in Brighton and Hove we have an 

   amazing tea shop on Church Road

(opposite the big Tesco's,)

                 Treacle and Co sell the most mouth watering

        cakes, to eat in or for when there is no

     time to bake to take home and enjoy. 

Last minute valentine card - free download.

                              Down load this cute mini valentines card
                              and matching envelope, for personal
                              use only please.

               You will need, 2 sheets of lightweight card

one A5 for the envelope and one

   A6 for the card, ribbon, glue stick,

       hole punch, scissors, ruler and knife.

            Down load the card and envelope, trim if necessary,

fold the card in half and write your message.

fold the envelope in half and glue down each

side.  Press the sides together.

            Insert card into the envelope and punch two

                        holes at the top of the card, 3.5 cm in from the edge.

Thread the ribbon through the holes

and tie a bow, address the card,

and deliver. The envelope is quite roomy so 

there is space to pop in a little gift or chocolate.

                                        Down load this on to a sheet of A6.

                                       Down load this on to a sheet of A5.

FREE DOWNLOAD - VALENTINES CARD

Choose from "you're my World" or "all the love in the world"
Down load and print one copy onto light weight card and
download and print one copy of this below, to make the
envelope.    (For personal use only please.)

You will also need I extra sheet of A4 paper to make the envelope, a cutting knife
glue stick and a cutting mat or something suitable to cut the heart out on i.e. a
magazine.

Cut out the heart shape and cut 1 cm from the end of the card.

Divide the card equally into 3 sections and fold.

                                                                Add your message.

Cut out the strips and the heart to make the envelope,

using the spare sheet of A4 paper.

                          Fold the spare sheet of A4 paper into 3 equal sections.

          The two equal sections make the "envelope"  

and the remaining section folds over.

             Glue the back of the "map strips" and attach 

     to the side's of the folded paper to make

 an envelope. 

                                                                   Trim the strips.

  Pop in the card. Glue the heart on the middle and Post !

Pancake day has moved to March ...........

Busy sewing and listening to Fearne cotton on radio one,
when she mentioned that pancake day, Shrove Tuesday,
 was this year March 8th not in February as usual,
no no no .......... checked my lovely dodo diary
 and yes ! Fearne is correct, so if like me you can not wait,
here's my favourite recipe from Delia

 I had the "best holiday ever" this year in Greece,

As a light lunch or a large snack the children loved the
Pancakes served in many of the water front tavernas.

 and we enjoyed the pancakes so much that on my return
 to England still enjoying that wonderful post holiday glow,
 I rashly bought this pancake cooker, from John Lewis,
 its great the pancakes never stick success every time,
 how ever with this fool proof recipe from Delia

using the usual flour eggs and milk, you add melted
butter to the batter, you do not need to grease the pan
and they do not stick.

I use this wonderful retro Kenwood mixer which my Granny
gave me, but the recipe works just as well using a hand held whisk.

My children love fruit, today i used frozen raspberries,
cooked with a tiny (2 teaspoons of butter and the same of sugar)
or nutella in their pancakes as well as sugar and lemon.

Seedy Sunday

                          Just want to share with you a few clutch bags made

                          from vintage re-cycled fabric that will be on the

                          village connection stall in Lewis for 

                          seedy sunday. This weekend up and down the

                          country groups are getting together to swap

                          seeds.

                                The magnetic clips and the chain is From Kleins,
                                some of the vintage fabric is an old bedspread
                                and the other bits of fabric were cushion covers.