oaty, grainy, honey bread

this is my second favourite bread - its a new one that i have made a couple of times now and i am loving it, so i thought i would share...

oaty, grainy, honey bread

1 1/4 cups water

2 tbs milk powder

2 tbs butter

2 tbs honey

1 1/12 tsp salt

2 cups wholemeal flour

1 cup white flour

1 1/2 tsp yeast

1/2 cup oats

1/4 cup mixed grains

1/4 cup pumpkin seeds

i throw it all into my breadmaker and put it on the dough setting (my wrists are dodgy and unfortunately not up kneading it myself) and then i pop it into a bread tin for the second rise.

once it has doubled, bake at 180 degrees C, for about 40 min.

mmm, fresh bread!

more crocheted stars

as i predicted, i am love love loving making these stars...

(although a confession, most of the yellow ones here were actually made by the fabulous sayraphim at another of our crafternoons)...

and how fun are crocheted christmas decorations!! 

check out the fabulous tree pattern from michelle at the fabulous royal sisters


crochet really is addictive, isn't it? (but in a good way...)

another of these skirts (with a how-to)

so, you may be starting to worry about me and these skirts (i know i am). ok, ok, i know i have already made and posted about these skirts twice (here and here). so far. so i thought when i made another of them the other day, i would add a how-to, (my justification of being able to post about them again). so here it is, made from the great op-shopped fabric i bought a few weeks ago. 

this is a seriously easy skirt. it takes a very short time to make. the front is straight and it has a draw-string at the back. the measurements here make an aust size 12-14, but it is easy to make bigger or smaller, just change the width of the sides... and lengthen or shorten as desired (although, being a fairly straight skirt, you would have to take that into account). still to be easy easy easy, just follow the instructions below:

basically, cut two rectangles - the front being smaller than the back - and the draw strings

front: L = 24", W = 20"
back: L = 24", W = 27"
draw strings: L = 26", W =  3" (cut two of these)

hem the bottom of each (or cheat and make it even easier, like i did, by just using the selvage as the hem). then sew up side seams right sides together (i start from the bottom to keep the hem in line).

fold over about 1 and 1/2" at the top and iron flat.

then sew in a little rectangle of interfacing (or use iron-on interfacing - even easier). make sure that you sew it on the skirt side, rather than the inside (i hope that makes sense- here's a pic). it goes right in the middle of the back of the skirt. 

then make two button-holes into the interfacing - like this. (its where the draw-strings will come out). 

 once you have done this, sew along down the folded top. 


next make the drawstrings - fold them in half lengthways (right sides together), iron and then sew the up (leaving the ends open)

turn them right side out (i used a knitting needle to help)

and iron flat. 


then its just a matter of threading them through your neat little button holes and sewing them firmly to the side seams.

and you're done!


phew - have a cup of tea and enjoy your fabulously easy new skirt...

look, i can crochet...

ok, so its not very good, but i have to say this is my first ever crochet by pattern - and i am really proud of it...

big thanks to the lovely michelle at the royal sisters, for her easy to understand grandma twinkle star tutorial (found via the very talented and much more even crocheters miss muggins and kate).

more stars to come!

we made a christmas tree...

what fun!

much credit to the engineer who did much of the drilling (for the branches - they thread through) and for a number of key aesthetic decisions (like the use of an old tomato garden stake for the trunk). now i just need to make a few more decorations for the bottom few branches...

my creative space (with a fabric stash confession)

i am always amazed at the beautiful, neat and organised fabric stashes there are out there. (which are often showcased as part of kirsty's wonderful creative space meme). as i've mentioned, my creative space tends not to be as neat as other peoples'. but so far i have avoided talking about my fabric stash. its also not so neat. particularly like this week, when i was fossiking through to look for some fabric for one of this week's projects. in my defense, my fabric stash actually lives in the big plastic box, and usually i am able to squash the lid on...