Spring is coming - the jasmine is frothing with divinely scented white blossoms and the jacarandas have blushed gold in preparation for their coming lilac magic.
Have you ever raised seeds in papier mache pots? I haven’t, but every time I read about this, I am sure it must be very satisfying. You make simple papier mache pots with strips of paper (I LOVE doing this!), fill them with seed raising mix, add the seeds, moisten regularly and then, when the seedlings are strapping, you plant them, pot and all, in the garden beds.
I suppose what’s stopping me from trying this is that I’m a GHASTLY gardener - dreadful! But you couldn’t go wrong with patchwork seedlings, surely!
And what better assortment of fabric to use than a gorgeous Woodland Bloom layer cake … except that Lucy and Simon keep walking across it!
Simon is very insulted by this suggestion - he protests that he has NOT walked across it, he was simply trying to get to the one strip of sun left.
Lucy has no such shame - she just keeps waddling back and forth! Off, off, you silly goose! Perhaps I should pick it up from the floor.
So I have sorted the fabric into 6 bundles of 5, halved the 10 inch squares, then sliced the long 10 by 5 inch pieces into 7 narrow strips. This will yield 3 papier mache bowls from each bundle of 5. 18 bowls. Perhaps, I’ll chop up the other 5 by 10 inch piece and make 36. Or not.
Oh, and I made a template Piece of Cake style. I drew a half circle on the computer, printed it out on stiff card, then laminated it using a self laminating sheet. This works such a treat - makes lovely, sturdy templates.
Trace, cut and …
a papier mache seed raising bowl!
Now I just need some seeds and a nice sunny place to line them up - I’ll be visiting that patchwork store near Nanny and Grandad’s tomorrow and I know I will find just the right combination.
And I haven’t been ignoring the village houses - I’ve been plodding along with my path laying nicely …
Gosh I love stitching.
Okay - I could say that we plunged to new depths of culinary despair last week, but in fact, we have been sliding towards this dismal situation since our move. So this week, it is time to rediscover the pleasure of dinner.
Little A and I started to reform ourselves on Sunday - we pored over “Nigella’s Express” and a new Women’s Weekly cookbook “Mince” (nothing quite like mince for speedy ease and yummy) and wrote a menu for the week, a shopping list and took ourselves off to the market.
Thus far, we have enjoyed pork and apple terrine with sauteed vegetables (it served two dinners - what a bargain!), tuna and chickpeas, pollo alla … forgot the Italian name - hunter’s chicken …
and we’ve made Lunchbox Treats (also from “Nigella’s Express) for Little A’s schooldays - but have all been unable to stop ourselves from sneaking these from the fridge all week!
The tuna and chickpeas make such a delightful meal, I thought I would share it here with you … it is ridiculously simple, quick and tasty. It’s our “fast food” when we are feeling too virtuous for takeaway.
Ingredients
1 400g tin chickpeas
1 250g tin tuna in brine
1 onion sliced finely
1 red capsicum slice finely
1 clove garlic minced
half a butternut pumpkin, chopped small, and seasoned and roasted in maple syrup and olive oil
a bagful of english spinach leaves, washed
1/2 glass of white wine
juice of half lemon
olive oil
thyme
parmesan
Method
Gently fry the onion, capsicum and garlic in a generous dollop of olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the thyme and cook until soft. Drain and rinse the chickpeas and toss them in, stirring until glistening and very gently fried. Pour in the wine and cook until it bubbles. Add the tuna and stir lightly through. When the tuna and chickpeas are warm, add the spinach and pumpkin. Mix through gently. Sprinkle with lemon juice and parmesan and serve immediately.
Nevertheless, despite all this healthy goodness, there is still room for a piece of Turkish Delight … after you’ve licked the icing sugar off of course!
Now we just have to tame the exploding milk and our kitchen frolics will be back to normal …
Little A’s school is currently celebrating Book Week - Monday was bookchat for parents at a local independent bookstore, Tuesday was a talk with a moderately celebrated Australian children’s author, tomorrow an illustrator is visiting for workshops, and on Friday the children are being treated to book themed icecreams.
Today, the children had to come dressed as one of their favourite characters from a book - and not ever wanting to revisit an already made costume, Little A decided to introduce her Year 5 class to the joy of Kit, the 1930s American Girl.
So it was off to the drastically discounted patchwork store for some 1930s fabric and Target for a pale cotton hat - as close to a cloche as I could find for less than $15 - and yesterday afternoon I pleated a knee length skirt, put a zipper in very badly, trimmed the hat, raided Nan’s wardrobe for a twinset (bit bigger than I thought!) and by the end of Grand Design (reality tv for the house obsessed), Kit’s school clothes were laid out ready for the morning. We even managed to find a locket for her neck.
Here’s Little A and Nan about to set off …
bit nervous but smiling …
and look at the pretty hat! I think I will requisition it this afternoon!
p.s. I really like the American Girl books - we have most of the historical stories and the characters are very endearing - such good, strong, imaginative, persevering, intelligent and kind role models. We also have a few of the American Girl publications on topics such as Friends, Growing Up, etc. and they are very good - Little A refers to them often and finds them very supportive and sensible - they present the information in such a straightforward, age appropriate and friendly manner, and have been the start of many a long and loving discussion between Little A and I. Highly recommended!
You know the old debate - are certain people violent because they watch violent television, or do certain people watch violent television because they are violent. Well, I’m in a similar quandary. (”Oh dear!” you say,”I don’t think I want to know this about Lily!”)
Am I utterly discontented with living in 21st century Brisbane because I have been compulsively reading UK and US country living magazines for over 20 years, filling my home with quilts and cross stitches that would look more at home in Kent or Kansas then Kangaroo Point? Or do I read UK and US country living magazines because I am utterly discontented with 21st century Brisbane? Hmmm …
I’m certainly wallowing in a moment of discontentment as I write! The glorious flowers, gorgeous picnics and darling cottages and farmhouses of July’s edition of the English Country Living are taunting me from the bedside, the Christmas patterns of the Prairie School Sampler are reducing me to long, pensive sighs of delight and longing, and now, these sweet little houses are whispering sweet nothings to me from the sewing machine.
I didn’t know Warren Kimble made patchwork fabric - cute! I must confess to having several of his jigsaws and placemats - you see, I just long to move into one of his villages and live in an old school house. I want a fireplace, an Aga, piles of bronzed leaves, wellingtons in the mud room and snow at Christmas. And in Veruca Salt style, I want it NOW!
So when I saw this fabric today - at a patchwork shop I haven’t visited for over 12 years! - I just had to buy some. And of course, when I had some time after dinner, I just had to indulge in a few hours of chopping and sewing - and tonight, some chucking.
First I started with this …
I wanted to add frames of different widths to the 4 inch village squares. I used some of the metres and metres of red polka dot I have in my stash, and some of the historical coverlet collection that arrived from Z and S last week. But this just wasn’t doing it for me - bit chunky.
So then I had the really good idea to unpick the corners of the inner red polka frame and add some dark navy spot corners - this was tedious, time consuming and incredibly unsatisfying …
… not to mention, as yucky as last week’s dinner! Ugh! And it took an hour. So revolting, I chucked it!
Back to the first round - I trimmed them down, and then added a Warren Kimble blue, too wide, trimmed it down, the added the red coverlet - nice and skinny! - and then another wider red polka dot …
… ooooh yes, that’s better! Now, I wonder how many I have enough fabric for? And goodness knows how I’ll join them together.
Meanwhile, I’m packing my bags and moving in. That one in the front right hand corner will do just fine!
Plan: Finish borders on tumbler quilt
Reality: 2 1/2 hour morning tea with a lovely friend followed by trek to fabric superstore.
Outcome: 43 pairs of bamboo knitting needles for $2 (that’s right dear readers - 0.04 cents per pair), some soft lilac gingham for a eleanor style apron (sense and sensibility here I come) and the most amazing bit (yeah, like 43 pairs of bamboo knitting needles for $2 wasn’t amazing enough!) - beautiful pumpkin coloured yarn spun from CORN HUSKS!
What a day! So here’s the needles …
… it was extraordinary - I visited my not-so-local-but-nearest-one-Spotlight to find me some lilac gingham and discovered that they had completely refitted the shop. Instead of looking like a chaotic mess of goods no one really cares about, everything was beautifully arranged in custom built shelves and displays. I was truly moved! It was so precise and lovely, I just had to browse and when I found yarn made from corn husks, that was just too wonderful to pass up.
You see, here in Australia, we have many vandals - oops, I mean farmers - that persist in growing cotton. That’s right! Growing cotton in the most arid continent on the planet. That just boils my goat! So when I see something like 100% corn husk being sensibly spun into a beautiful yarn, it is my moral duty to support such an endeavour.
Now I only bought one ball ’cause I wasn’t sure what I would do with it, so I sat thee down this evening to indulge in a little Poirot and knitted another washcloth. I love knitting washcloths - they are my cup of tea - small, quick, no shaping, and one can be a little creative! And it’s made from a corn husk - that’s just so cool!
I gave it a simple seed stitch border, and then knitted a cow into the body - moo! Hopefully tomorrow when I block it, the cow will be a little more obvious. I still have yarn left - maybe a smaller washer with a pumpkin?
For more on the joy that is corn husk yarn, there’s a cheerful review over at knitter’s review . I found everything she said to be reasonably accurate - except that I was incapable of piercing the tape with my blunt bamboo needle - and I’m usually really good at splitting the yarn. Nor did I find that it twisted regularly - mine stayed flat 90% of the time. Oh and mine was only $4 per ball as opposed to $8 but there may have been a size difference. It is light and easy and forms smooth, even stitches and has much more stretch than cotton and much less stodginess. I shall buy some more and make a crew necked top for summer - and I’m wondering how durable it would be for crocheting up some string bags? Only one way to find out!
Now all I have to discover is how to make my casting on look as beautifully neat and smooth and firm as my casting off.
See - hubbly-jubbly casting off …
hanky-manky casting on …
If you know a better way, do drop me a line!
p.s. I forgot! The needles - there were thousands of pairs of knitting needles in a bin near the front door - most of them were ugly glittery plastic things or drab gray metal, but in amongst were these lovely bamboo needles in all sizes. A shop assistant handed me a plastic bag and said “Fill a bag love for $2! Everything here’s going to the bin this afternoon so you might as well take what you want!”
Good golly miss molly! I began stuffing those bamboo needles into my designated bag - no one else was showing any interest. Initially it was all very thrilling, but after 15 minutes rummaging and a 2/3s full bag, it seemed almost grotesquely greedy. So I paid my $2 and left the rest for someone else who will hopefully be just as excited to see bamboo knitting needles as I - at least, I hope they got there before the store threw them in the bin! So wasteful!
What will I do with 43 pairs of knitting needles. Hmmmm … don’t know. Julian asked his standard question when something new comes into the house - “Are they beautiful and or useful?” ”Certainly!” I robustly retorted! ”All 43 pairs?” he queried.
Perhaps there will be some lovely fillled knitting needle cases finding their way into stockings this Christmas.
