Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Romantic Legends




"As I gaze upon the sea all the old romantic legends, all my dreams come back to me. " Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


Sky Watch Friday
celebrates views of the horizon from all over the world.


This week my view is a bit hazy and overcast but any day is a good day on the beach.




Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Travellers

“We are all travellers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.” Robert Louis Stevenson

Dust storms are causing s
ome wild skies this week. Visit Sky Watch Friday to see different coloured skies from all around the world.

Click to enlarge

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Quests


"Our life is
a long and arduous quest after truth
and the soul requires rest
to attain its full height"
Mahatma Gandhi

Nothing but blue skies around here but check the other Sky Watch Friday fans to see their views of the sky.


Sunday, September 13, 2009

Tattered Angels

Can you hear the yippe skippy happy dance?

Am excited to become a member of the Tattered Angels Design Team, home of Glimmer Mist and lots of good things.


A big box of new toys is winging its way down under to Australia and I can’t wait to start playing!


Watch this space for many more good things to come.



Tattered Angels Design Team

Amy Martin. Annabelle O’Malley, Beatriz Jennings, Vicki Chrisman, Danielle Flanders, Gaelle Fauglas, Hilde Stolk,
Louloupi , ME!!, Nathalie Kalbach, Pamela Young, Patricia Komara, Shelia Rumney, Susan Lui

Exciting times ahead between a fabulous range of products and this line up of talent, it is going to be fun!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Silence







“Silence is the universal refuge” Henry David Thoreau


Posted for Sky Watch Friday, hundreds of bloggers from around the world all sharing their view of the sky.



Using quiet time to start on this year's Christmas cards with a mix of Do Crafts and Kaiser stamps and Christina Re papers.



Saturday, September 05, 2009

Celebrating Seasons

Bloggers who inspire us to make the best of what we have in creating a welcoming home and celebrating the best of the seasons are Melissa’s Inspired Room and Susan’s Naps On The Porch. Update: Seems like everyone enjoys a good fall themed party including Roeshel with the DIY Show Off and we were featured on Its So Very Cheri

Living in the southern hemisphere seasons are reversed but come September it does almost feel like Indian Summer in these parts, warm days and cool nights. A perfect time for whipping up a batch of cookies and doing a little crafting.

Maple Leaf Cookies
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 large egg yolk
½ cup maple syrup
3 cups flour
(shift threw a dash of cinnamon or nutmeg if you like a little extra flavor)

Cream butter and sugar together before adding the maple syrup and then the egg yolk. Gradually shift the flour into the syrup & butter mix.Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic and chill until firm.Pre heat your oven to 350F or 180C

Prepare your baking sheets, don’t we have too many options these days? silicone still leaves me confused, clay makes them crispy, parchment paper and good old butter on metal, take your pick.

Roll the chilled dough to about 1/8” thin. Maple leaf cookie cutter your leaves, get creative by drawing a knife lightly across them to mark veins. 8-10 minutes in the oven for smaller 3 inch cookies or 10-12 for larger 5 inch cookies. Bundle the scraps and chill again to get the most out of your dough.

Frosting (if you can’t get enough maple) ½ cup maple syrup and 2 cups of confectionary sugar should result in spreading or piping frosting. Exact proportion depends on humidity at your place.

And in honor of enjoying the season with quick and easy crafts what about this? Grab a leaf, if it is not colorful enough, a dab of paint or one of the fun new products like glimmer mist, let dry and mount into a pretty frame.

Life should be about having fun with family and friends and celebrating the best of the seasons which in my kitchen can include frangipani and maples all the same time zone. That is an inside joke for transeasonal multiple time zone operators.

Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Doing Nothing



"Don't underestimate the value of doing nothing,
of just going along,
listening to all the things you can't hear."
from Pooh's Little Instruction Book inspired by A.A. Milne

Looking forward to a quick holiday break on the beach and doing nothing. . . . . . . well except for maybe a little sky watching.


Have lots of sparkling blue skies lately so its back to using the beach to frame the sky but in Sky Watch Friday, you will find 100s of bloggers from all over the world with their own view of the sky.