Summer is in the air

When I look at this top it just makes me want to go to the beach and smell the salt air. Maybe it's the rope (rather than ribbon) but it has a distinctly nautical feel about it. Literally took about 1 hr all up to make and I love that it looks girly but isn't pink!

On the down side, as my little cherub is such a grub, I'm guessing it won't stay light coloured very long.....

Let's hear it for the boys!!!!

This is the long awaited first outfit for the gorgeous little boys in my life (and yours). These are intended to be worn as pyjamas but can also be worn out and about.

I love the fabric which was bought from Peppermint Stitches at Toowong (great shop). It was also the fabric I used to make the bloody giraffe but this outfit only took about 1 hr compared with 6hrs for the giraffe!

This one is heading to Melbourne for Ben's first birthday - Happy Birthday Ben!

It's hot enough for ice-cream!

I've got this applique thing down pat! Look out, no fabric is safe. I'm loving this ice-cream cone creation - so sweet and pretty. Thankfully I've got heaps of the two fabrics and beads used to create it so I can make plenty more. Might experiment with a chocolate ice-cream next.

Apple pancakes with spiced lemon butter

I made these pancakes for breakfast with friends recently and they got polished off pretty quickly! So light and fluffy and best eaten warm and with maple syrup.

Apple pancakes
1 cup self raising flour, sifted
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking powder (helps to make lighter and fluffier)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon cinnamon sugar
1 green apple, peeled
A few teaspoons of butter for cooking

Sift the flour, baking powder and cinnamon sugar then make a well and add the buttermilk and beaten egg. Whisk until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth.

Peel the skin from the apple and discard. Now peel the flesh in short and small strokes so you have lots of tiny slivers of apple. Set aside.

Heat a non stick pan until it sizzles when butter is dropped in. Add large tablespoons of batter until you get the right size. Now quickly add a few slices of apple on to the raw batter. When lots of bubbles appear, flip the pancake and the apple will cook and warm through.

Spiced lemon butter
100g spreadable butter or softened hard butter
Zest of one lemon
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
2 tablespoons icing sugar
2 teaspoons of all spice

Stir until all combined. This can be used to spread on pancakes, or even in the pan when cooking.

Babushka dolls are back! And so am I...

Well, what a bugger it is when your sewing machine breaks! Admittedly, it has been getting quite a work out considering it's not even on minimum wage. But after a service and repair it's back up and running.

Oh, how I love this fabric. I found this at a little stall at the Stitches and Craft Expo earlier this year. The problem is, I don't remember the name of the seller or how I'm going to find more of it! So you could say, for the time being, this is a limited edition run.

A lucky little 1 year old (and gorgeous god daughter) is getting the green one as part of her present and Mia is snapping up the red one, soon to be worn with her new denim shorts from Cotton On Kids (how good is that shop!). I've got about 5 other cut outs so will be using them wisely.

Sassy satin and diva denim

Wow, can hardly believe it's been so long since my last post. Thank you Emma, my ever faithful follower (bribed by friendship), for reminding me to get my shit together and post something new! Have got back into the habit of sewing now after a few weeks off (sick) and I feel ready for more creativity to flow.

So, I've been working on some cute denim shorts for Mia. Though I'm not really a fan of the all-American look, I DO like denim with red and white, as shown in previous posts. The addition of silver glitter stars compliments the look. These are a little big for her (size 2) but were modelled by Tom for the picture. The waistline nearly cut him in two but he survived. Just.

I've also been experimenting with satin which is a fair bit trickier to sew, thanks to the slippery material and need for finer needles and thread. But I think the end result is very pretty and great for a summer party dress - or even over jeans with a long sleeved top underneath in winter. It's the first time I've added pin tucks to the front and whilst time consuming it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.

I had to bribe Tom with a lolly to get him to pose in the dress and STAY STILL! Not a good idea as I wanted to take the pics around 7:30pm when he should have been going to bed. Yes, he had sugar straight before bed....gee, that was stupid. An hour later he's still playing in his room....

New mid week recipe - just try it!

Chicken with spinach, proscuitto, potatos, macadamias and a garlic cream sauce

Serves 2

2 chicken breasts

2 tbls olive oil

5 slices proscuitto (about 75g)

1/3 cup macadamia nuts

1/2 bag washed baby spinach leaves

2 small potatos

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup cream

Toast macadamias in a dry pan until golden brown.

Dice potatos to 2cm cubes and soften for 3 min in microwave. Set aside

Heat olive oil in a heavy base pan and pan fry chicken. Ensure cooked through and set aside and cover.

Using same pan add potatos and proscuitto and stir through until lightly browned. Add macadamias and spinach and stir for 1 min, until spinach slightly wilted.

Now get a small fry pan or sauce pan and saute garlic in a small amount of olive oil. When brown add cream and heat through till it's simmering.

Arrange potatos, proscuitto, spinach and macadamias on a plate. Slice chicken in to 4 or 5 pieces and fan over. Pour half of the cream over one piece of chicken, then the other.

Yummy!