Some favourite things

I have been shamed into getting back over here after Caroline pointed out that she had been seeing the same peach and basil muffins for a very long time! I didn't want to do another post until I could respond to an award Johanna gave me though, and that involved actually getting round to photographing some stuff, so that gave me the boost to use the nice spring light this morning and get myself in gear.

The award is a 'Ten favourite things' one, which is pretty much as it sounds. Since number 1 is baking, number 2 is crafting, and number 3 is the British countryside I thought I would illustrate my list with some of my recent projects and some snaps of our recent trip to the Highlands of Scotland. So, here goes:

1. Baking

The gift I made for the friends whose wedding we were going to in the Highlands: a set of table mats and coasters using some of the Liberty fabric I bought in Stratford. I know it's not exactly baking-related, but I'm it will help to show off some tasty baked goods.

2. Crafting

Some of my favourite things illustrated in embroidery (using a new book called Sublime Stitching). I know, I should have ironed it. Feminism is about choosing whether or not to do housework in my book.

3. Walking in the British countryside (current top three places: The Lakes, Dartmoor, the Highlands)

View from the top of Cairn Gorm (we got the furnicular railway; our friends did it properly and walked)

4. Should be top really: my house and all who live in it :)

Really easy knitted bag - just go round and round and round on circular needles. I need to practise my intarsia stitches, but it was my first time trying

5. My lovely friends - especially the ones I made in Cambridge and now in Leamington - plus Eco Sis and Kiwi Sis who don't get any choice in the matter.

Knitted mice, who have started a colony on the arm of the sofa

5. English tea shops - tea, scones, toasted tea cakes - who needs fancy cupcakes?

Beautiful spring day - and snow-capped mountains in the distance. Our friends couldn't have asked for a better day for their wedding

6. Second hand bookshops (best one ever: in Chatham, Kent - can't remember the name, unfortunately, but it even kept the Sci Fi-loving Scientist happy)

7. Markets - of any description.

We may have visited a whisky distillery the morning of the wedding...

8. Pick 'n mixes - I have no idea why since I can't eat most of the things in pick 'n mix sweets, but I especially love the ones with dried fruits and wasabi covered peas and things. I even got excited about a salad leaves one in an Aussie supermarket once.

Sock toy: yes, he used to be a sock, now he's too cute to give away (though the Munchkin has one of his own, made from a pair of socks that got left behind after Kiwi Family came to visit)

9. Curling up on the sofa with The Scientist and a smattering of cats to watch whatever dvd series we're currently hooked on.

Scottish castle

10. History - makes me who I am. Enough said.

Thank you, Johanna, for thinking of me for this meme, and sorry it took me so long!!

Penguin and mushroom salad

I'm probably inviting all sorts of weird web search results with a title like that - what a world of difference a missing comma makes (as I said to my students this week in a seminar that rather worryingly had to turn into a grammar lesson on how to use an apostrophe). Needless to say, the penguin was only matched with the mushrooms in the course of writing this post, and neither was harmed in the process.


The mushroom salad was actually my entry to Lisa and Jacqueline's monthly No Croutons Required event, which was featuring chickpeas this month. Chickpeas are our favourite pulse (is that sad or with-the-moment?) so I really wanted to enter - but busy-ness got the better of me actually posting it before the deadline. I had paired my chickpeas with a marinated and grilled portobello mushroom, serving it with mixed leaves and sundried tomato, and with some home-made blackberry vinegar drizzled over the top. I would have added avocado too if I'd had any - I think that would be a nice additional texture. You can't really see the vinegar in the photo but it gave a nice fruity acidity. I kept the marinade simple as I didn't want the vinegar to get drowned - just a bit of shaosing wine, some balsamic vinegar and some garlic powder.

Inquisitive penguin

The penguin was another matter entirely. I started him quite a while ago but then didn't have any orange wool, so he sat rather sinisterly beakless and featureless for several weeks. Then I got some more wool and made him his beak, but didn't get round to attaching his wings or giving him any eyes. So when I finally got him all together I was pleasantly surprised at how cute he was. He's another character from my book of knitted toys, and the reason I was pushed to finally finish him, is because he's one of several ambassadors from my sewing group, to an exhibition of toys in Cardiff. One of our remote members lives there, so she will be taking them in, and hopefully seeing them in situ. They come back to their owners eventually, which I'm pleased about - I felt rather sad squishing him into the postbox to go off on his important errand.

Scholarly penguin

The Easter break starts at the end of this week so hopefully I will get a few more posts up - including an award from the lovely Johanna :)

Thoughtful penguin

Stratford stash

For the last couple of years The Scientist and I have given each other a weekend away for our Christmas present. That is to say, we have gone away together and each paid for the other's half. Sending each other away for separate weekends probably wouldn't be so romantic. Anyway, it was The Scientist's turn to organise it this year, and he kept it a complete secret until Monday, when he found me faffing about with a theatre seating plan and wondering if I could take up a special offer for King Lear at Stratford for us. He grinned a big grin and revealed that that was my surprise - a weekend in Stratford with tickets to King Lear - and all the Shakespeare houses. The weekend away was lovely enough, but RSC tickets AND all that extra thoughtful planning as well? He's in credit with the brownie points for some time. (And in this house brownie points can be exchanged for actual brownies :) ).


We've just come back and we had a lovely time. The play was amazing - neither of us had seen Lear before, but we both loved it. The hotel was nice, the room luxurious, Stratford cold but pretty (and not too crowded), and the Shakespeare houses we visited beautiful and interesting. And particularly informative given that I'm writing a lecture on homes and families in the past which was a bonus for me and no doubt quite tedious for The Scientist - but he kindly acted interested.



One of the best things about the weekend was not being in any sort of a rush. We ended up doing quite a bit of unexpected whimsical shopping as a result, and this is the stash I came back with. Most of it was from Book Depot, and a kitchen/furniture shop the name of which I forget (too busy ogling haberdashery :) ). The bookshop produced two craft books, some felt and some little handy notepads, and the other the lush selection of fabrics and a needle for knitting in the round to make this bag pattern some day when I've finished my other projects. Yes that is Liberty fabric - on sale and gorgeous. The brighter one is to make some table mats and coasters for a friend's wedding present (the red and the bias binding are to finish them), and the other is to make into a bag. And the pinky one is maybe to make some PJs - or alternatively to make something cute for The Munchkinette. I was really tempted by some fine Liberty cord as well but managed to restrain myself. The noodles were from a health food shop - it's not a good trip if you don't come back with some new noodles. In this case black rice and wakame, and green tea. I feel slightly guilty from all the shopping, but some of it's for presents or present ideas, and I know that my sewing buddies will laugh and sympathise anyway! The Scientist had a good shopping trip too - several books and a good sit-down to read the sports section while I fussed over notions.

Crafty Christmas cont'd

I hope you all had a fun festive season. We did - lots of eating, relaxing and spending time together. I will miss The Scientist when he goes off to work tomorrow :(

We were given some lovely presents by friends and family. Here are a few more of the home-made items we gave in return:

Knitted hat and gloves for Eco Sis

Woolly bear, for Vet Grub

Ever-growing litter of pigs - so cute I keep making more, but I suspect they will be joining Kiwi Family's household at some stage

As you can see, knitting is the new patchwork in our house, much to Mausel's delight (it's a game, a game!). The bear and the pigs, as well as a whole lot of stripy mice I haven't photographed yet, are from this brilliant book. The patterns vary in difficulty but there's a glossary of knitting techniques, and most of the toys are made in only a few pieces. I'd definitely recommend it. I made an elephant too but he came out a bit droopy so I've unravelled him and am going to try again using smaller needles.

Christmas crafts

The festive season is a time when foody bloggers everywhere are cracking out the sugar, chocolate, cream and cranberries to combine in ingenious ways to express their love for friends and family. For me, this year's little home-made offerings have mainly involved wool and fabric rather than edibles. Here's a selection which speak for themselves:

Felt and button advent calendar, one made for the Munchkin and Munchkinette, and one for Science Nephew

Jewellery case made for a secret santa with my new crafting buddies- we each provided materials and selected a pack for each other to make something from

Leopard and Snow Leopard costumes for the Munchkin and Munchkinette (pictured). I want one too!

And lastly, one which I forgot to photograph, but which its new owner fortunately did - this little gift which went to the lovely Johanna for her daughter Sylvia. I was sad not to be able to fit in a trip to see them when they were in Scotland last month, but you can read all about their holidays at Johanna's blog.

There are more coming, but not yet delivered to their recipients! In the meantime, have a happy festive season everyone! xx