Little bits and pieces

I finished the tinyland afghan! Well, I think it's finished. I was debating putting a contrasting border around the edge, maybe in blue. I still might do it but for now, finished!

Actually I finished it several weeks ago and have tried to blog it several times. But alas, the dial-up internet connection has been steadily getting worse and worse, and I've barely been able to get online, let alone get my blog to load. So it might be time to move with the times and look at a broadband connection.

As promised in the last post, I did go out and take some piccies in the garden. Unfortunately I'm out of practice, and most of them were out of focus, badly composed or both. And, since it's done nothing but rain for the entirety of the past two weekends, I haven't had a chance to retake them. I now understand the phrase "to have a face as long as a wet weekend". This weekend was interminable...

One or two photos came out, so here are my blueberries! Still fresh and delicious in the middle of winter. That's something to be cheerful about, like the blueberry pancakes I had for breakfast yesterday. Yum!

I love the way the pea shoots tangle together. They are still going strong, despite the cold. I also have silver beet, broccoli and lemons. So it's far from being dead out there.


Cold winter nights mean snuggling up on the couch with a blanket and a Bollywood DVD. It's always good to have something to do with my hands too, so this is my next needlework project. It's pretty tiny so hopefully my eyes won't fall out while I do it. I'll keep you posted!

The hothouse in winter

The weather outside may be frightful, but inside the hothouse at the Christchurch Botanic Gardens it's still hot and steamy! And there are still some colourful and fascinating plants putting on a display. We went for a walk on a balmy Monday afternoon which felt like midsummer, although just two days before there had been snow falling to sea level.

I'm hearing stories of snow being forecast for next week. We had a -4 degree frost this morning so I'd almost believe it.

Which is why these colourful, tropical photos are so wonderful to look at right now! They remind me of summer and being warm.

This is my favourite, with its crazy curling stamen and paint-speckled petals.

This weekend I'll try to take some photos in my own garden, which is looking quite pretty and colourful for midwinter! The only problem is with days being so short, good light for photos is in short supply.

But it was just right for this photo, which was taken by my mum last weekend as we had lunch by the estuary. It was about 1 pm and everything was blue and gold and pearly. Imagine having this view on your doorstep... I'd never get any work done, but oh how lovely it would be!

Pincushions

These are some pincushions I made last weekend. I had a lovely photo I took of them all laid out in a rainbow, before I stuffed them, but I can't find it anywhere... I must have deleted it off the camera without transferring it. So, this one will have to do. Seven little pincushions, all in a... circle?

I love the vintage-look print on this fabric. I had to take these photos at night and then colour-correct them in Photoshop, which is why there's such a discrepancy in the colour of the background! The first photo is the closest. Oh, and there are more pics at my Flickr page.

I've been reading about this Orphaned Artworks thing and it's got me a little freaked out. Even though it's a US government bill, it's obviously going to affect artists worldwide. So I've decided to start watermarking my photos. It feels a bit strange to do it... like I am being arrogant to even assume that someone might want to thieve my lowly little photograph! But, I'd feel really sick to discover my photos being used somewhere without my permission, so this is hopefully a small step to preventing that. What do you think? Do you watermark your photos too?

On a lighter note, here's a lil' stuffed panda I made this week. He's off to a very special destination but I can't say more in case someone is reading this...

It's a gloomy, grey, soup-and-toast kind of day here today. Luckily I have a loaf of bread cooling in the kitchen as we speak. Time for lunch :)

Miniature granny squares

The doily wasn't going quite the way I wanted it to so I put it aside and started these tiny squares for a mini afghan. There is quite a challenge going on with these... some curl at the edges, some are bigger than others, some are nice and square and some are more round. However I'm nothing if not persistant (read stubborn), and I want to see this finished so I can have something to drape over the chaise which matches the patchwork cushion. So I will finish it, even if my eyes drop out of my head...

Welcome to Tinyland

I love miniatures. I don't have a dolls house, mainly because I don't have room for it, but I do have a small (but growing) collection of miniature furniture and bits and bobs.

Welcome to Tinyland! Here is my white metal chaise, softened with a comfy patchwork cushion. A miniature pink cyclamen (my favourite!) sits on a little side table, and someone is getting up to mischief on the shelves of the dresser in the background....

Naughty kitty! Maybe that's why the birdcage is empty...!

I embroidered this little patchwork cushion. The main reason for getting this furniture was because I want to make little soft furnishings... cushions, throws, embroideries, etc.

So tonight I started on this. It's supposed to be a table centrepiece but is turning out a little bigger than I thought, so it's going to be more like a tablecloth. It's okay though... as I work I'm getting ideas for better, more intricate designs.

This is the tiny hook I'm using. I don't know the exact size, but the handle says "5 + 22". Here it is alongside a 4mm hook for scale.

After this I'm going to make some teeny tiny granny squares for an itty bitty afghan, and I have my eye on one of these Janet Granger embroidery kits. And some 1mm knitting needles. And a magnifying glass!

Cashew and Potato Curry

I made this curry for tea last night and it was very very good. I was going to email the recipe to a bunch of people but then I thought, much easier to post it here and just direct everyone. I adapted the recipe a bit, as you do, so I'm writing the recipe as it was originally (I tore it from a magazine) with my adaptations there as well.

CASHEW AND POTATO CURRY

2 tbsp oil
2 brown onions, sliced - no onions for me!
2 tbsp ginger
2-3 cloves chopped garlic
1 tsp yellow mustard seeds - I used black
1 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp hot chilli powder - no hot chilli for me either!
3 cups vegetable stock
500g potatoes, peeled, chopped
350g kumara (sweet potato), peeled, chopped - I didn't have any so just used more spuds
1 cup frozen peas - I found about 5 pods in the garden so used those
50g baby spinach leaves - I used Bright Lights, fresh from the garden, and don't worry - you won't taste it at all!

CASHEW PASTE
3/4 cup salted roasted cashew nuts - I used a packet of chopped peanuts
3/4 cup plain yoghurt - I used Greek
1/4 cup coriander leaves - I didn't have any so used 1 tbsp powdered coriander
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp curry powder

To make paste, process nuts in food processor for 2 minutes, or until mixture forms a paste. Add remaining ingredients and process until well combined. - Not having a food processor or mortar and pestle (shame!), I just mixed them in a bowl with a spoon.

Heat oil in large saucepan. Add onions, ginger, garlic and seeds. Cook for 2 minutes or until onions are soft. Add tumeric and chilli. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add stock and potatoes. Bring to boil. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes (until potato is tender).

Stir in peas, cashew paste and spinach. Simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes, until peas are tender and curry is hot.

That's it! I thought it was going to end up very liquidy, what with having 3 cups of stock, but once everything was all added it thickened up quite nicely. Oh - it makes a LOT too - we got 4 good sized servings out of it and you could probably get 6 medium ones.

Crochet flowers

I finished these up recently. They are in the same colours as my Rose Tassels, but instead of a tassel these have a leaf or two and a pin back.


I did a couple in the rose design as well.


They are available at my Felt shop. I'm not listing them on Etsy at the moment but if anyone is interested, do let me know and I can remedy that.

For the next project, do I finish the socks I started, refine the fingerless gloves pattern I'm working on so the wrist isn't so flappy, or toss them aside and start something new...?

This weekend was quiet, mostly filled with housework, crochet and Buffy on dvd. Lui had his stitches out on Friday and it was the best visit we've had in ages... into the consulting room within 5 minutes, stitches whipped out, Lui's health pronounced good (even his neck is healing at the moment) and no charge! Whew.

Tomato relish recipe

Tomato relish cooking
Originally uploaded by ghostmyst

2 tart apples, peeled and cored
1 kg tomatoes, skinned and roughly chopped
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
200g sultanas, finely chopped
200g sugar
400ml vinegar
3 tsp mustard powder
3 tsp ginger
3 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Combine all ingredients except sultanas in a large saucepan. Simmer till apples and tomatoes are tender.

2. Rub through coarse sieve or puree in blender (this is optional! I never bother with this step because I like my relish chunky). Return to saucepan.

3. Stir in sultanas and boil till desired consistency is reached. Thicken with flour/water paste if necessary. Bottle and seal.


This is, quite honestly, the best damn relish you will ever taste. I used all the tomatoes I grew this year (cherry, red, yellow, green) and they all taste great, although it does pay to separate the colours if you want your finished product not to be too muddy looking. Enjoy! And if you have a favourite relish recipe, please tell me about it!

Roses, beads and a Funnelhead update

Here is the project I was working on last time... a crocheted rose dangly ornament! Well, it can be used as many things... I'm using one as a curtain tie and it also looks good as a handbag ornament or hanging off a door handle or drawer knob. Anywhere you need a little bit of rosy cheer!

I made them in two colours: dusky rose and lovely aqua. I can't decide which is my favourite.

The only part I didn't enjoy so much was stringing the beads. Fiddly! Even for a picky-fingers like me who usually enjoys fiddling around with tiny things. But I think it was worth it.

This is the next lot of work in progress. You'll have to wait till next time to find out more about that!

And guess what, poor Lui is Mr Funnelhead again. He came in on Sunday with a big cut on his tum which had to be stitched up. That meant an overnight stay at the vet, and they were going to remove the lesion on his neck at the same time. However upon shaving the fur off, it turned out to be bigger than the vet had realised and he decided to leave it be. He didn't even take a little bit for a biopsy, unfortunately. Poor Mr Lui is very happy to be at home eating jellimeat again, and resigned with good grace to wearing his funnel for the next few days. At least until he stops trying to eat his stitches.

A little bit of progress

This is just a quick little update. Thanks for checking in on me! I'm gradually moving out of the kitchen and back to the workspace. While I still have two bowls of tomatoes left to make the last relish with (recipe coming soon, I promise!), I've also set myself a couple of creative projects to finish. Nothing is quite finished yet, but they looked so sparkly and pretty under the daylight lamp that I had to take some pictures.

Beautiful blue glass beads. I am quite in love with aqua right now!

Beads, beads, beads... don't you want to reach your finger in and give them a stir?

Can you guess what I'm making? I'll tell you next time!