September Favourites

Hmm - it seems to have been a pretty blaah month as far as card-making goes!  I did really enjoy trying Anita's book fold, which turned out to be far less complicated than I was expecting. Her pdf tutorial is found at the bottom of THIS post. I think the only things I did differently were to sponge the edges of the "pages" before assembly, and to cut a frame to use to neaten the top layer when the card is open.   The card with the reading owl on the front went to my book-loving niece along with an Amazon voucher. The Once Upon a Time card  - well, you know who you are! I couldn't find any suitable digital images to download for the front, so I ended up designing my own in GIMP - I've never used so many layers in my life before. The Irish Blessing card I made to give to Anita when I got to meet her - a memory of Ireland to take back to France.

Botanic Gardens - sculpture

Today was a beautiful sunny day with blue skies, so we took a trip to the Botanic Gardens in the morning. Not having checked first, we weren't sure if the Sculpture in Context exhibition was already open, and were delighted to discover that it was.  We didn't get the list of sculptures, so I am sure we missed some but we really enjoyed our time out.

Here are some of the best pictures of the sculptures - there are more in a Google Photos album HERE if you are interested.

My favourite was definitely the costume-jewellery bird, I took at least ten photos. And the felted wool hanging in the Alpine House was really beautiful too, but hard to get a good photograph of. The wicker people and the deer both melt into the background but were very effective.

I'll be back with some photos of the flowers in the next couple of days...

Autumn garden

I visited my sister a couple of weekends ago while C was over in the States. It was a very cold morning - I was glad of a shawl packed for the coach to wrap round myself while I waited for it (and I wasn't the only one, the girl sitting beside me produced a wrap from somewhere too), but a beautiful sunny day, and her garden was looking lovely.

August Favourites

How did it get to be September already? I had trouble finding a photo to use - last September was not very fruitful on that front - but I did find one of some little mushrooms on the front lawn.

And plenty of cards, as the Dare To Get Dirty challenge running over on SCS gave plenty of inspiration. I made a DIY gel plate from gelatine and glycerin as a couple of the challenges called for using one. While I didn't make a card for either of those challenges, I certainly had fun creating backgrounds for my own use and they feature on the panda card and the enamelled leaves.

Memories: we had a large fuchsia bush similar to this in the shrubbery in our garden, and we loved making the flowers into little ballerinas by threading a stem through the calyx to make arms. A neighbour down the road had a greenhouse and he grew many fancy frilled varieties, even more ballerina-like with their pale creams and pinks and multiple layers. But most of all they remind me of summer holidays - all along the west coast of Ireland from north to south, the hedges along smaller roads are filled with fuchsias and I have vivid memories of walking down to the beach along lanes overhung with them on our earliest childhood holidays up in Donegal.

Recipe Time

I recently tried this recipe from Yottam Ottolenghi's The Cookbook. I had my eye on two sweet potato recipes in it, and this is the one that I went with. He attributes it to Epicurious originally, though I imagine he's added his own twist.

Dice about 2lb /850 g sweet potatoes UNPEELED into 3/4" cubes. Toss in 3 tblsp olive oil, season with salt and pepper and back at 190C for approx 30 minutes till just tender, turning over gently half way through.

When you first put them in, toast 35 g pecans for about 5 minutes, then chop coarsely.

Dressing: 

4 tblsp olive oil (I used half olive, half sunflower)

2 tblsp maple syrup

1 tblsp sherry vinegar

1 tblsp lemon juice

2 tblsp orange juice

2 tsp grated fresh ginger

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

salt and pepper to taste.

Whisk together.

When the potatoes are ready, put in a large dish.

Add the nuts, along with 

35 g golden raisins

4 spring onions coarsely chopped

4 tblsp chopped parsley

2 tsblsp chopped coriander leaves

1/4 tsp chilli flakes

Add the dressing, toss and season with more salt and pepper if needed. Serve straight away or at room temperature.

I think it should be lovely at room temperature, but so far we've managed to eat the entire lot hot, so I haven't got to try it yet. The first time I had no cilantro (coriander) and used mint instead, which was very nice. 

Friday night was a warm, balmy evening. We went for a walk in the park. They'd been cutting the long grass now that the fawns are growing up - reminded me of the time I was lucky enough to go for a walk there a few years back when they were baling it. It's only the second time ever I've heard the deer making so much noise - the other time was when I had to walk home from work in the snow. They sound like a flock of birds mewling. The workmen must be getting the Papal Cross (from Pope John Paul's visit) ready for the upcoming papal visit.

July Favourites

How did it get to be the third of August already? This month's header is a lucky snap of a bulfinch I saw one morning on the way to work last August.

And some cards, mostly reflecting summer outdoors.

I was really pleased with this one because the fairy is actually the mask left over from a card I had made previously, but which I though I could upcycle in her own right.