Birthday fairy

Morning peeps, well not sure when this will get posted as our internet has died yet again, hubby laughed when I told him the faults phone number is in the phone and the guy on the other end said they really should get this reoccurring fault sorted as I shouldn’t know all the tests that have to be done before they escalate a fault. It took them several days to get to this point before as the first time we had this problem way back in July they told me it normally took 2 days to do the tests I’ve done in the last 20 minutes and that’s because you have to wait 10 minutes between them! Well tests done and still no internet, husband and son who both think their arms have been cut off when they can’t get on the net and can’t go out as we are waiting for a parcel delivery so who knows what kind of mood they will be in by lunch time?- update internet back on by 7pm and within 5 minutes hubby on computer and son on internet on his phone!

Well my card today is for my niece for her 18th birthday, I know fairies might seem little girlie but I think this fab fairy glen stamp that I was lucky enough to win at the release blog hop from sugar Nellie has enough attitude to make her a grown up girl fairy. I went outside my comfort zone and used pink, boy I find it so hard; it’s got to be all in my head as it is just another colour after all.


I coloured Pippi Longsocks fab name with promarkers and added stickles to her wings and dots on her skirt, she just looks such fun and ain’t anybody going to mess with her, even if she is wearing girly pink. The rest of the card I used scraps from my pink scrap file; I used a punch to fancy up the corners and followed the layout from fetch a sketch. The big pink 18 is peel offs. The sentiment is a lotv stamp. I’m undecided as yet as to whether to add anything in the top right corner, I think it looks a bit bare but adding something might make it look cluttered and detract from the clean lines, let me know what you think please.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges (when I can get on the internet to find some):-
crafts 4 eternity-magical mystical
crafty ann's -clean and simple
our craft lounge-going pink for breast cancer awareness
polkadoodles-mystical and magical
totally papercrafts-glitter it
charisma cardz-anything goes
crafty purple frog-sparkle
fetch a sketch-layout
scrapbook sisters -anything goes
simon says stamp-anything goes

Biroche burgers

A quickie, a couple of nights ago my son decided after watching Australian master chef that he fancied trying Heston Blumenthal perfect burger. Well haven't got a mincer so he had to make do with my homemade burgers but I did have a go at making a brioche burger bun. Have to say it's not Heston's recipe as the copy of that we found on the internet wanted you to ferment the dough for 24 hours so I improvised and just found a brioche recipe in one of my cook books.

It was the first time I've made brioche and hubby said it was probably the best bread I'd made to date. I normally have problems knowing when to take the bread out you know the hollow sound  and I invariably take it out too soon and its a little doughy, but maybe I'm on a streak of better baking with bread dough, first my croissants now this brioche.
Here's a picture of the finished burgers, and yes they were that big, 12 cm diameter and for one of the first times I can remember neither hubby or son could finish their meal, a job well done in my book. It eve stopped my son returning to his computer games as he said he felt that full he needed to relax and let his dinner go down.

Clean and simple

Hi all hope you all had a fab weekend and a pleasant week to come too. It's half term where I live so I have my son at home and hubby has taken the week off too and we plan on spending some quality time doing things as a family once we have done the few things we have to do, especially my son doing his homework, which will be a task in itself stopping him getting distracted talking on facebook and playing computer games!

My card I finished yesterday and it's for my sister in law who has a birthday later this month, mum saw the no more soggy paws and asked if she could have it and as it means more pennies in the coffers to buy rubber why would I say no?

For this one I used a sweet sassy girl and decided to challenge myself and use pink, I still find it a hard colour as it's not a colour I favour even in life very often usually flowers but rarely other times.I know I've not used much pink but I did try, I of course used my promarkers to colour with, The layout is for the sugar bowl challenge so clean and simple just my style and with such fab images from sugar nellie I don't think you need much else. The mirri card is from my stash and the striped papers is forever friends. The leaves are from a martha stewart punch and the flower recylced from a bought card mum gave me as she thought I could use it, see I've even managed to train mum to look for bits I can use.

Right now off to see it there are any other challenges to enter this cutie for and then I have another couple of posts to finish things off for, but first a challenge hunt.

These are the challenges I found to enter:-
the sugar bowl-layout and clean and simple option
the squirrel and the fox-one for the girls
pile it on-be happy
crafty Anne's -clean and simple
crafty catz-happy birthday
4 crafty chicks-marker it up
pixie dust studios-happy birthday
shelly's images-anything goes
southern girls -spots and stripes

No soggy paws

Morning all and hope you are all enjoying your weekend and have something during the coming week to look forward to other than work (school) and chores.

My card this morning is for the sugar bowl challenge, have to say I'm quite likeing this new way of me doing challenges, making the card for one challenge and then finding others by the feline playful site to join in, if there aren't any k sera sorry for the spelling but you know what I mean.

I used this wonderful image of such a cute girlie looking after her pooch. It so reminds me of my last dog who had the re been such a thing readily available would definitely have worn wellies. She was a real character and even raincoat clad if it was raining at walk time she wouldn't venture out unless the umberella was over her. Come to think of it if it was raining and she needed to spend a quick penny if it was raining she would just stop dead at the door until the umberella was there to keep her dry.

I followed the fab sketch and inspiration picture from Gayle and made it into a birthday card for my sister in law later this month. The green and white gingham reminds me of my summer school uniforms and despite having to wear green for all those years I still think its a fab colour.

The papers are papermania and of course I used promarkers to colour my image (fly the flag use British) the card , white is from my stash the green is a recylced folder divider from my son. The braid is from hobbycraft and the buttons again from my stash. The sentiment stamped in green ink is from LOTV.The white card is dry embossed by hand using a fiskars board.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges;-
The sugar bowl-sketch and inspiration picture
Annabelle stamps-corner embellishments
saturday crafter- white and one other colour
Prairie fairy friday- sugar and spice and all things nice
If the shoe fits -girls rock
little miss muffet- girly girl
I brake for stamps- girl power
the sisterhood of crafters-birthday
the stampboutique-someone special

Lunch box naughty treats

I know lunch boxes are suppose to be healthy but if I pack fruit for my hubby and 17 year old son it only returns battered and bruise along with complaints that they didn't have enough to eat. I have learnt to stop wasting my breath and money where fruit is concerned and give them a naughty treat along with healthy sandwiches, at least that way I know what they are eating and can hide vegetables and fruit in their evening meals so they get their 5 a day. I know I'm naughty for hiding and controlling their diet and also for giving them a treat but although I don't have a sweet tooth I do enjoy baking when I can fit it in.

Yesterday was great fun all 3 of us in the kitchen together, hubby and son were making a cheesecake they had seen on Australian masterchef, which took over the oven for a good 3 hours plus in total so my baking became a bit of a marathon in between washing their dishes.It is now taking up space in my fridge and when it is allowed to emerge from it's tin I'll take a piccy and add to this post.

My bake turned into a marathon and from starting at 10 am I packed in at 6pm to start dinner and did all the finishing off this morning , which has been a mini marathon of 5 hours all told.

I had time that I couldn't do anything yesterday so decided I would have a go at making croissants for this mornings breakfast as I knew the dough should be rested in the fridge for at least 12 hours(great British bake off taught me that).

I finished them off this morning and made plain and chocolate chi[p croissants along with some experimental danish pastries. I have to say I didn't have any for breakfast as I am so trying to shed some extra pounds but both hubby and son said they were good. I did plan on freezing some as I reckoned they would only have one or two each but they really must have been good as what's left isn't worth freezing and I suspect will be eaten for breakfast tomorrow. I even thought they looked like the shop bought one, let me know what you think.

Here are the experimental danishes I made with the rest of the dough, I really can't believe how easy it was even though it was time consuming.

I do like to mess and play and decided I would try another couple of recipes from the great British bake off, battenburg, Viennese melts and salted peanut cookies.

The battenburg isn't perfect but that's more down to the baking parchment not being strong enough the stay straight , mine isn't foil lined, guess I should have added some foil to , never thought of that when I was doing it, hey ho. Never the less I don't thinks it looks too bad and son says the cake tastes great, which is all that matters.

The cookies even I think look fab and I really don't like dark chocolate. I'd never made praline or caramel which is the filling and actually threw one lot away only to realise I just hadn't left it long enough to change colour, so I'm really pleased . Hubby and son have tasted the plain biscuits and approve so that's  good too.










These are what I call Viennese melts, though I know that's not what they were called by Mary the contestant who made them. In hers she added food colouring to give a swirl of colour, I didn't have any so mine are plain. Hubby and son have tasted the plain biscuit before construction and said they really do melt. They are very crumbly if you over handle as I found when putting them together but I think they look fab if not a bit sickly.

Anyway these are my boys lunchbox treats, if they last that long of course, if not I'll just have to find more baking time.


Haver a fab day all now I'm off to find the sugar nellie blog hop day 2.Thanks for popping by.

Birthday bumps?

No chance not when you are ten. Hope my nephew likes this card when he receives it for his big one  ooh birthday. Even though I have a son myself and I do enjoy making boy cards I still find it hard making cards for my nephews, well I never know what any of them are into these days and sad to say as they live quite a way away I rarely see them, well the 2 younger ones the older one when I do see him he might as well not be there as he is away with the fairies attached to technology of one kind or another.

Anyway this card is a fab LOTV stamp and I decided to try and make it a fun card just in case my nephew thinks it's a bit young. Inside I wrote a message about him now being too big for birthday bumps, hope he sees the funny side.

I coloured with promarkers and used scraps of paper from my stash.The base card is a craft card from hobby craft which they had on offer, well as hobby craft is next to the diy store I was visiting for wallpaper I had to pop in didn't I?
I know there will be some crafters' out there screaming as I used peel-offs for the numbers and sentiments but hey I don't like my writing so shoot me.


Now I had a wee look on feline playful for a sketch to follow and found one that fit the bill along with a few other challenges I think I'll enter.
Hope you all have a fab weekend and that life is good, thanks for popping by.

Everybody art-sketch
Sweet stamps-anything goes
Papertake weekly-anything goes
Deep ocean-happy birthday
Crazy amigo challenge-animals
Ruby's rainbow-for a boy
Penny's paper craft challenges-anything goes
My mum's craft shop-all creatures great and small
Southern girls-boys and men
Paperplay-autumnal colours
Little miss muffet challenge-monsters or animals
Forever friends -use a sentiment
Do you stack up-brown
Auds sentiments-happy birthday
Allsorts-use a bear

Sassy witch for Krista's new challenge

Hi all well sneaking another quick break, in between finishing my chores, my excuse is I've been to the dentist and had to have a childhood filling relpaced as it had cracked and it was in my back tooth. I really don't like the dentist but see it as a necessary evil and so as my face still feels numb and I can't yet have a drink unless I want to dribble every where I thought I'd visit blog land.

I made this card at the weekend after seeing Krista's new challenge blog last Thursday and decided it was high time I inked up this wee lady that I have to say I have had some time. I do love her new digi's but alas hubby doesn't like me to use paypal so I will just admire from afar, but have to say there are so many beauties I would have a hard time choosing just a few.

My cutie bestest witch is coloured with promarkers and I decided to make her a bit funky with blue hair well I loved the inspiration picies Krista gave us. The bats are some stickers I have had for like ever and the ribbon and green paper and purple mirri card are from my stash, all mounted on a black base card. Forgot to say I added spakly bits to her tights and clothes with sakura glitter pen, well every girl needs some sparkle.

Well now I'm off to see if she is suitable for any other challenges and then it's back to cleaning the bedrooms and bed making.

I would like to enter my sassy witch into the followingt challenges:-
Saturated canary challenge blog-sketch and optional halloween theme
Come and get it-halloween
I did it creations-halloween
lollipop crafts-halloween
bling it on-no patterned papers
creatalicious-anything goes
really reasonable ribbon-halloween
secret crafter-halloween
crafts4 eternity-anything goes
crafty ribbons-halloween