2013

Happy New Year! Don’t worry, I haven’t completely lost the plot – I know it’s actually 2014, but thought this would be a good time to do a round up of the past year. So here are my last 12 months…

January

February

March

April

May

June

July – I think this must have been a particularly busy month as I have no photos saved! I’m guessing some craft must have happened, but no idea what!

August

September

October

November

December

So that was my year. I hope it was a good one for you too, and that 2014 will bring happiness and lots of craft opportunities!

In March…

…I (very briefly) enjoyed a splash of spring colour in the sunshine.

…I updated the wreath that hangs on the back door (after a Christmas theme for a year and a half I thought it was probably time for a change).

…I made (well, I watched my friend make – that counts right?!) some very yummy, very colourful gluten free chocolate chip muffins.

…I made two pairs of baby slippers.

…And I started telling Turtle Tales (part 1, part 2, part 3).

Part 4 is coming really soon! And pop along to Little Muggles if you’d like to make your very own turtle 🙂

February

I’ve had blog posts running through my head all week, but no time to write them down. Now it’s Saturday and I have all the time in the world and the words have run out! So instead of words, I thought I’d give you some pictures of what I got up to in February.

I enjoyed some early (and very short lived) signs of spring.

I made my first ever crochet necklace. It’s still on my desk and I just love looking at it!

I made a cover for my journal.

I whipped up a super quick baby boy blanket.

I’ve also been working on another project since the beginning of the new year, but I’m making it as a birthday present, so I won’t be able to show you for another couple of months.

What have you been up to this month?

Chocolate dishwater

Today has been a rather productive one. I finished my lesson planning for next week (it’s always such a good feeling when it’s done!) did a big food shop and spent the afternoon preparing food for our weekend away. I’ve whipped up a yummy looking chocolate mousse and a great slab of rocky road, both courtesy of Nigella. As a result of all this chocolatey goodness the dishwater smelled like chocolate, which was a little odd! Anyway, the mousse and rocky road are both now tucked away in the fridge and I’m enjoying a little sit down with my crochet. Bliss!

My mousse looks nothing like this! I’ve made industrial quantities in my beautiful blue bowl rather than delicate little pots, but I’m sure it’ll work just as well.

I just wanted to give you one last reminder about my giveaway – I’ll be drawing the winner tomorrow sometime just after 10am GMT. I’m not sure if I said before, but the giveaway is open worldwide, so wherever you are you’re most welcome to join in!

Cheesy bites

As well as making a mountain of cookies to take camping, I also whipped up some cheesy bites.

I found the original recipe over at mumsnet, but changed it a bit as I went along. For example, I didn’t have any cayenne, so I added a good sprinkling of ground black pepper and a teaspoon of English mustard powder for extra flavour. I also used mature cheddar, as that was what I had in the fridge!

The only other change I made was the shape – instead of cutting the pastry up into straws, I used cookie cutters to cut out mini stars and hearts.

I loved this recipe for the fact that it’s really quick and simple to make, and the results are just delicious. They’re really not good for you (as they are packed with butter and cheese) but that’s what makes them so completely yummy!