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Things have happened, and I've moved on...

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 16:29:00 PDT

Well, were to start..?

I guess we all have dreams. Most of the time, they stay dreams, constantly the subject of a wishful ponder.

Well, a few months ago I lost my job. It wasn't a bad thing. It wasn't because of me. But it became the circumstances that made me realise some dreams are worth trying out.

While I have dreams that are bigger than this one.. that I hope to fulfil in the next 10-15 years of my life.. this is where I'm starting.. A food and craft blog... clique? I suppose.

But that's not stopping me from being uniquely me, and bringing what I have to the table as well.

I've decided to start afresh. A brand new blog. I'm a graphic designer, and I've always shuddered looking at the disarray of 'Oh!! I like that!!'. So with one end, came a new beginning.

I did think the banners all around my site would have informed people that I had moved, but I still get an awful lot of traffic for a site that I barely touch. So, just incase you're a faithful subscriber, come on over to:

www.scissorspaperwok.com

So the dream.. to be a part-time blogger, part-time designer.. working for myself, from my own home, and able to maintain an income if ever I have children..

There's so much to do.. I know most of you can relate. My to do list just grows and grows, and everything seems important.. (like my tax return.. grrrr)..

Well, here I am... signing off from this blog for a long time.. I may use it again one day, but for now, I have a new baby, and I must attend to it.

Wish me luck, pray for me, it's kinda a big deal if this dream comes true.

And most importantly, please come to my new hangout.. the grass really is greener over there!

Until next time... blessings, joy, and love - no really, I mean it.

Kimanh x

Chickpea Crunch - Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Wed, 11 May 2011 14:36:00 PDT

So, what does one do when your craving something to munch, and you really can't justify heading out to buy some junk food??

Chickpeas in the oven!

It can't get much simpler than that.

Here's the recipe below...

Enjoy.

POTATOES! I can't get enough! (Hassleback Recipe)

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Mon, 09 May 2011 10:54:00 PDT

Recently, I realised how much I admire potatoes for the satisfaction and fill-factor they give me. To me, they're like a blank canvas. You can flavour as you will, and cook to whatever texture you desire! I am hands down a fan of the crunch-factor. Give me a bag of chips/crisps any day!

Although it's easy to cook potatoes like this, I thought it was worth sharing a pic where I thought they looked like gorgeous golden clam shells. I was expecting people for dinner last Friday as wasn't sure whether I would have enough food, so I thought I would break the potatoes in half (after I had prepped them), and voila, double the pieces!

To make Hasselback Baked Potatoes:

- Pre-heat oven to about 220ºC (425ºF).
- Cut large potatoes on half (length ways)
- Slice to create cuts seen in the pic (but don't cut all the way through!)
- Lay on lightly oiled baking dish, spay lightly in oil.
- Season with you favorite flavours.
- Cover in tin foil.
- Place in Oven for 40-50mins. Check on them every now and then. You are looking for a golden colour, with a but of crunch around the edges.

For this dish I flavoured it with a bit of salt and pepper as it was going to be served with a gravy.

Enjoy.

Kolhrab Again...

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Mon, 09 May 2011 10:21:00 PDT

Since I discovered what Kohlrabi was, and since I discovered that I can use it to make Som Tom, I was as pleased as ever to receive it again in my veggie box delivery this week.

The recipe using Kohlrabi can be found on a previous post here. Today I thought I would play around with my camera, and voila, I think my photo turned out not bad thank you very much. BUT I realised that I had forgotten a vital ingredient :( Can you guess what it is?

Spring Greens Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Thu, 05 May 2011 06:40:00 PDT

Spring Greens! Yum O! I love how earthy and wholesome spring greens are. The last time I used spring greens it was an experiment gone right! So I thought I would share with you today a meal made in less than 5 mins.

You will need:

Old rice (preferably from the day before, from fridge is great. Don't use freshly cooked rice, otherwise it will be more like a porridge)
Spring greens
Ginger powder
Korean red pepper powder (the kind to make kimchi)
Juice from half an orange
Soy sauce

Directions:

Place cold rice in pan, and add heat. You may need to add some spoons of water if the rice is hard
Cut spring greens while the rice is cooking, add to pan.
Season with ginger powder, red pepper powder, and little soy sauce.
When the spring greens are starting to limp, squeeze the juice from half and orange into the dish.

No quantities have been added as this is well, a left-overs dish. So be sure to taste what you're adding to get the flavour just right. The flavour is slightly reminiscent of Kimchi, but has a tangy, sweet earthy feel all at once.. And the best thing, it only take a few minutes to prepare so long as you have some left over rice.

Enjoy.

Cute Miniature Wet Origami!

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 04:58:00 PDT

I couldn't resist not blogging this pic when I saw this awesome image (below) on Pinterest.

The creator Dinh Truong Giang has an impressive portfolio and is one to keep an eye on.

Kohlrabi Recipes - Including my Favourite Thai dish Som Tom

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 06:54:00 PDT

Som Tom using kohlrabi!

A few days ago I declared my absolute ignorance to a vegetable I now know as kohlrabi. After reading the suggested uses from the comments on my post, the thought came to me that I might be able to use this as a substitute in som tom instead of a papaya. Here in the UK, I've never come across the kind of papaya that is right for this dish. It needs to be mostly green, with a tiny bit of yellow coming through.

Traditionally, som tom is made using unripe papaya and fish sauce. However, I've made a few alterations, which I promise doesn't destroy the quality of this dish*. The first change was using salt instead of fish sauce. Fish sauce is.. well.. from fish.. this doesn't quite site well with me, and has an interesting smell to it. And the second change (recently discovered substitute), is using kohlrabi instead of papaya.

Ingredients:
• 1 kohlrabi peeled and grated
• 1 large tomato cute into thin wedges
• 1 grated carrot (option. bulks up and adds colour)
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• Fresh chili or chili flakes (add to taste)
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of sugar
• 1 lime (add more to taste)
• Roasted peanuts

Instructions:
• Place grated kohlrabi into a pestle and mortar, toss in tomato wedges and finely chopped garlic. Bash this together so the tomatoes have lost their shape.
• Add all the flavouring (salt, sugar, lime juice, chili), and continue to bash for 1-2 minutes.
• Taste. If you find it very sour, add some sugar. Or too sweet, add some lemon and a tiny pinch of salt.
• Finally, add freshly roasted and crushed peanut to this dish.

That's it! Easy hey? If you know how to use your taste buds while you're cooking, you are not going to be disappointed!

You can eat this with ordinary rice, vermicelli noodles, as a side salad, or my favourite - sticky rice!

Other ideas that came from some viewers were:

From Fredelimaliya: Cook in salty water like a potato, and serve with "bechamel" (white sauce) sauce.
From Fredelimaliya: Cut into little pieces and use in a green salad.
From Fredelimaliya: Thinly sliced, braded and then fried.
From Melissa: Peel it, sprinkle with salt, and eat it! (Melissa insists this must be done while sitting out the back in the sunlight. I agree.)

There you have it. I've had a wonderful introduction to using kohlrabi, and I can't wait to have some more to make one of my favourite dish som tom!

* How do I know that substituting fish sauce with salt works just as well? Because I use to have fish sauce, as only at the beginning of last year have I become 100% vegetarian. Trust me.. it works.

Strange Vegetable

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 09:35:00 PDT

Do you know what this vegetable is?

I would be incredibly impressed if you did!

I don't think I've ever seen it before, nor can I say I've eaten it before!

It arrived last week with my organic food box which I get delivered every week. I saw it on the list and thought I would leave it there, as there is no best way to try new things, than to... well.. try new things.

Kohl Rabi is what it is. Kohl Rabi (aka German turnip), is a relative of the Cabbage family. It can be raw or cooked, and has a similar taste to that of a broccoli stem or cabbage heart. While this is important to know (and thank you to Wikipedia for being my source of knowledge) my priority is to find a recipe to pleasantly digest this alien of a vegetable.

The best recipe I found was a Kohl Slaw dish found at Easy Peasy Organic via Foodgawker.

I'll have to make a few small exception to the dressing that I use (clementines and lemon instead of grapefruit, and egg-free mayo), but hope it will be a refreshing salad to add to my recipe repertoire.

If you've had any experience using Kohl Rabi, I would love to hear about it. I'll be making whatever it may be in 24-hours.

Until then... keep smiling :)

BEST Pizza Dough Ever Recipe (and 5-minute sauce to accompany)

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 07:37:00 PDT

Image from 101 Cookbooks

When I saw the heading "BEST Pizza Dough Ever Recipe" from 101 Cookbooks, I knew I had to give it a chance.

Pizza - and making it from scratch has become a regular for Mark and I this year. It might sounds odd seeing as we cook vegan food, BUT, I believe goumet pizzas taste just as good without the cheese. It sort of loses the fast food greasy factor, and becomes and savory gourmet delight.

The pizza recipe is fairly long, but followed precisely, and you WON'T disappointed. You will need to plan beforehand though, because the dough needs to rest in the refrigerator for 24-hours. This was also the first time that I had made pizza dough and not had to use a rolling pin to get a pizza shape from the ball of dough. I felt like such a pro trying to gently stretch the dough by bouncing it on my fist - my love just laughed and said he didn't think that's how "they" do it... well it turned out very well thank you very much!

To top this recipe off, is an incredibly quick and seriously addictive tomato sauce. We were lucky to have left over sauce which we used to dip toast into. The 5-minute sauce can be found here.

Now let me assure you, I'm not just posting this for the sake of having a post. I have tried this.. and I can't see myself ever making pizza dough or the sauce for that matter in any other way (well, unless the Bestest recipe comes out).

Bon Appetite!

Button Template Now Available!

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 01:40:00 PDT

For those that have been long time followers, you would probably know that my tutorial on how to make your own personalised buttons from shrink paper has been one of my most popular.

Every now and then I'll receive an email from someone that would love to have the template that I use in the tutorial - which I've only been too happy to email.

But, as life would have it, I become more tech savvy and hey presto, I can now provide you with a link to instantly download the template.

CLICK HERE if you would like to download the template. Once the image downloads to your web browser, just right click and save the image.

FREE button template

This Thursday...

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 12:32:00 PDT

This Thursday, my husband Mark and I happen to have a breakfast guest... so what better chance to try this seriously super beautiful, cute pancake idea...

I may not get it right, but normal pancakes will still taste good.

UPDATE:

Thursday morning has come and gone.

The beautiful pancake shown above is not so easy to make. I blame my make shift tomato sauce bottle that didn't enable the best squirt and control factor. And my mix. So all in all, nothing was right. On the plus side, the pancake tasted fantastic, and my guest loved them as well.

It's now Thursday afternoon and I'm working on a website design. I had a headache right behind my eye balls, but I'm feeling a bit designery today, so I'll press on with the work at hand.

Pinterest - I CANNOT get enough!

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 12:26:00 PDT

This is my pinboard "Just Beautiful" - images that resonate, or leave me silent.

I cannot tell you of the exercise my index finger has had scrolling down the wonderful pinboards on Pinterest.

Pinterest is a visual collection of boards made up of people like you and me... I first discovered Pinterest from Cool Hunting.. and I was instantly hooked.

Hooked...yes... but not in a bad way. Because it's now my form of online bookmarking (and that's a healthy, organised thing right?).

It's doesn't suit everything I want to bookmark. For example, it might be a whole website that I want to save; that's not where Pinterest comes in handy. Let's say you stumble across an amazing recipe that you would like to use some day... All you do is press the magic Pin It button that can be installed onto your web browers menu bar, and presto, a window pops up and you pin the image that you want, onto the board that you want. It automatically saves the link for the next time you want to revisit that site.

Here are some more of my boards. You should make some of your own!

That's it. Share the love.

p.s. Did I mention AWESOME for people planning weddings??

p.p.s I know I said I cannot get enough of Pinterest... but I can.. the lovely thing is.. the pages don't scroll forever, there's a time to say goodbye and look a real person in the face.

I cared too much - and got nothing done.

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 11:31:00 PDT

So, I have this blog yeah? I'm pretty sure I don't have any true followers (because no one emailed to ask if I was sick or anything), but I felt under enormous pressure to have overwhelmingly cool crafty tutorials - cause if I'm honest with you, I got heaps of views and it gave me a buzz..

But I started this blog over a year ago, and I don't exactly show signs of a serial blogger - not that I want to be.. BUT.. there are times when I think, "Oh, I'll blog about that - no wait, will people be interested?" Or, "that has nothing to do with my blog."

So I've had to tell myself some very important things:

It's MY blog darn it, and I'll post what I feel like posting
I don't have to be a "professional" blogger to blog - is there a blogging degree anyway?
People like me (we'll get to that) might actually appreciate the things I find on the web, or be interested in topics I research for myself.

SO.. the very important question.. will you join me for the rest of my blogging sensation? I can't promise no grammaticool errors. Nor can I promise every post will dazzle your senses and engage your interest. But you might find we are distant kindred spirits!!! And that would be cool right? The world is a tough place without friends.

SO x2 you need to know a bit about me, because if we're similar in anyway, I think you know what to do.. here goes:

- I love design - I'm a freelance graphic designer

- I love cooking - I'm a practicing vegan - but not strictly

- I love beautiful things

- I believe in the Bible - not Christians (know what I mean?)

- I live in the UK. Itching to move back to my homeland Australia (plans are underway so watch this space)

- I LOVE gardens - veggie gardens mostly.

- I see lots of cool stuff on the web, and I think I should share. Yeh?

I don't have a very eye-catching and beautiful photo to attach to this post.. I just HAVE to get this out there. And guess what? (This is rather smug) I'm not going to proof read this post.. go on take that... it's like a conversation. Take a mistake like I stuttered? Is that ok? Oh please let it be okay.

To summarise this post in a sentence... I've missed blogging. Oh wait one more... I'm just going to post whatever I feel like, not what I think people will like.

Hang on.. this reminds me of something.. this is corny.. but is that not the name of my blog?

I apologise if I sound arrogant.. but I need to stop thinking too much about what I post. And I hope, I really do hope, that you enjoy the things that I have to share.

Over and out for now... and wait for the many more posts to come!

p.s. you know what.. I'm a ____________ (can't think of an appropriate word).. I totally read through this post and fixed some mistakes, and inserted some missing words.

p.p.s do you have an appropriate word? I thought of loser.. but I didn't want to put myself down and be all negative... hmmm.

Our Green Thumbs...

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 06:35:00 PDT

If you've been wondering where I've been lately... chances are you might find me with my hubby in our backyard (or eating the produce of it!)

Here's a photo tour of our first ever vegetable garden!

It may look like a sorry sight now, but trust me it gets better. In the top right are chives, underneath is mint, and you're probably wondering what on earth is that blue sheet? Well, it's a lettuce roll! Doesn't look like much there, but keep on scrolling, we can't eat enough to keep it down!

Lettuce starting to push through!!

Still babies...

WOO HOO!! Check it out!

Taking a decent portion of lettuce like this hardly makes
a dent in our patch.. we haven't had to buy lettuce for
weeks!

Broccoli! My neighbour warned me of moths that love to
nest in broccoli and would lay its eggs on the underside
of the leaves. So the cardboard around the base is meant to
prevent the moths laying. They didn't stop them all, but
apparently mine look great compared to others. Still some
caterpillars but found them early on.

Voila! That's my broccoli! It makes me so
happy to be able to eat form my own garden!
Yes, they are planted way too close, but
I didn't know any better.

Runner Beans. We're still waiting produce,
but there are 2 beans!

Our sugar snap peas have grown almost to the
top of the stakes and producing lots of beans.

Baby red capsicum (peppers). You can see the beginnings
of another in the white flower!

Picking beans for my lunch!

So what do you think? I'm so pleased with the outcome. I use to think you had to have some sort of great talent to grow vegetables, but now I know it doesn't take much, just some TLC when needed.

Give me MOR!

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Sun, 23 May 2010 08:54:00 PDT

I wish for all women across the globe to experience the beauty of MOR products!!!

They are luxurious body care products, with exquisite packaging (which I utterly adore), and they use an abundance of natural ingredients.

MOR is an Australian company, but keep an eye out, this highly successful brand may soon be in a store near you!

My absolute FAVOURITE packaging!

Check out MOR here!

Blogging is a Strange Thing...

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Thu, 13 May 2010 18:44:00 PDT

As in, I haven't blogged for a few weeks now, and I feel GUILTY!!!

Why? I don't know for sure? But I think it's because I have close to 500 hundred readers and I feel the need to provide good and constant content! (And to all of the almost 500 readers - Thank you, thank you thank you!!! It's awesome to know that people are tuning in!)

Just incase you haven't picked up along the way that I live in the UK - I do. But I find myself writing this post from an unlikely place.

Las Vegas. That's right, I'm in Vegas baby. (Thankfully not on the strip!)

My husband contracts to a bit an IT guru... he does most of his work in the UK, but occasionally comes to Las Vegas where his boss lives to do some work. Mark had left for the States on a Wednesday for a month. Needless to say, I was going to miss him!

Then on Friday, Mark called and asked if I wanted to come out as well and help with the project. Being a freelance graphic designer, I can, and did say YES!

So here I am! It's my first time to America. Unfortunately I've been working really hard - pulled an all-nighter two nights ago, but at least I'm with my husband :)

So incase you've been wondering, that's why I'm off the radar. I'll be back in the UK in a week and a half.

I'm loving the warmth, I love doing grocery shopping here (I've only been to Albertsons) and I love big portions when I eat out!

So a BIG HELLO from the same continent that many of my readers are from!

Kimanh xo

p.s. Things should be slowing down here soon, i can't wait to show you some of my FAVOURITE Australia brands - watch this space!

Vintage Button Collection Obsession

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 05:24:00 PDT

For those that have found their way to my blog via my Etsy shop (Sparebutton - now closed until further notice), you would know that I have a slight obsession with buttons! Vintage buttons, tiny buttons, and making buttons!

I love vintage buttons because they are so much more interesting, hand crafted, thought out, then most of today's boring buttons.

I can't choose a favourite, can you?

Jamie Oliver's TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food | Video on TED.com

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 09:00:00 PDT

If you have children, or are passionate educating children about healthy eating, then this TED video is a must watch. Jamie Oliver, with such passion and drive is actually doing something to change the unhealthy trends children are enveloped in.

There were some points that hit the heart and reignited strong feelings I've always had... After Jamie tipped a wheelbarrow full of sugar out onto the floor (demonstrating the amount of sugar in flavoured milk that a child in the US will drink at elementary school), and said,

"...judging the circumstance, any judge in the whole the world would look at the statistics and evidence and they would find any government of old guilty of child abuse. That's my belief,"

the seriousness of the situation really dawned on me. Not the seriousness of healthy eating - I believed in that a long time. But the seriousness of health on a national level. I focus on being healthy. I'm not a fanatic, I enjoy sweet pleasures every now and then, but I do have a concept of health.

Am I being arrogant to say I don't think everyone does have a concept of healthy eating? There have been shows on television showing unhealthy families and what they eat.. and every time it's the same... "they didn't know"... "they were never taught to cook"... "they thought it was okay"... Were they educated? Why weren't they educated?

If you watched the video, the stats that Jamie talks about ARE NOT OKAY! There shouldn't be people dying because of diet related diseases. Children shouldn't be getting fed junk at school, training them for life. Something has got to give, and it shouldn't be our health, the quality of our lives, it shouldn't be raising taxes to deal with this mess and it shouldn't be accepting what mass food manufactures are selling.

How can we fight this? What will you do? What have you done? The conversation has started... so lets keep it going...

Where the Hell is Matt?

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 07:06:00 PDT

If you've never have the simple pleasure of watching Matt dance his silly dance around the world, then let me have the pleasure of introducing you...

You can find more about dancing Matt's story here.

Lucky Lanterns

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 02:48:00 PDT

When I saw this picture from nikdaum.com it was a wow moment, but also a sweet reminder of my wedding day; when our wedding guest lit these lanterns and set them off to make stars in the night sky. It was one of the highlights of my wedding... (absolutely no pun intended!).

My photos aren't as impressive as the picture above, but I'll let you share in my lantern fun anyway!

And just for the record, it's been 1 year and 12 days since my blissful wedding day! (How fast does time go these days?!)

Stunning Underwater Fashion Photography

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 04:26:00 PDT

There are some things in this world that just make you stop and look again. This is certainly one of them. Photographer Alix Malka, has with such beauty and movement, shown off the beautiful dresses that these models wear. To view more of Alix's photography, click here.

How to make Herb, Spice and Chili Bread Rolls. Tutorial.

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 02:39:00 PDT

Mixed Herbs, Tumeric, Basil, and Chili Bread Rolls

Hi everyone, and welcome back to my new found love of baking bread. I have to say that this did take a little longer than normal bread rolls, but boy, the presentation is worth it, and a treat to experience the different flavours.

Allow dough to rise double in size

If you already have a favorite dough recipe, use that. My one is very basic, in fact it's just off the back of a packet of yeast. (so consider using the recipe for whatever yeast you are using if they provide one). I used: 325g flour, 1tbs salt, 1/2 tbs sugar, 1/2 sachet of yeast, 200ml of warm water. Mix dry ingredients, then add water. Kneed for 10 minutes, then leave to rise in a warm place covered with the cling film, or a damp tea towel.

Add flavouring

Once the dough has doubled in size, divide into 4 equal portions. Then add a healthy sprinkle of spices. Continue to kneed the dough to spread the herbs and spices equally. (I used, Mixed Herbs, Basil, Chili, and Tumeric)

Divide into smaller portions, ready to make rolls

Once all the flavours are mixed evenly, roll into a log shape and lay next to each other. Depending on the size of your rolls (mine were mini), use a knife to draw a lines a guide to the size of each roll. Then simply divide the dough, roll into a smooth ball and place on your baking tray.

Making it Pretty: To help me remember what roll was what, after I rolled the dough into the ball, I simply dipped the top into a little bit of it's flavouring. For the Basil rolls I tore little leaves of Basil.

As I wanted to serve my rolls on this wooden tray, I
laid the rolls first on this, so I would know what size I
could allow. I then moved the rolls on the foil to a
baking tray.

Bake in the oven for 30 minutes at 195C (380F). Or until golden brown.

Bon Appetit!

My husband took to these like Cookie Monster to Cookies! Serve with soup, or have fresh with a savory spread!!

Language Lesson 101: Bon Appetit

bon appétit! (often bon appetit!)

Used to wish someone enjoyment of the meal they are about to eat. (source: Wikipedia)

How nice is that!? Let's wish everyone to experience enjoyment when they partake of something that can be as wholesome, social and loving as food!

How to Mark a Portfolio/Book Case

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 04:13:00 PDT

Hi Everyone,

Well, I'm in job hunting season at the moment, and the frustration that I was facing (apart from not finding a job) was that I couldn't seem to find a nice portfolio case for a reasonable price. So in true form, I decided to make one myself. Now, it's not the most practical case, but for the few moments when I'll use it, it sure does look pretty! Below is how I got the the final piece...

Above shows some of the materials I used.... Other material and
equipment used include:glue, metal ruler, stanley knife,
cutting mat, paper, needle and thread, 1 button, and cardboard.

To make the portfolio sturdy, I got some nice and flat cardboard from an old box we had (thank you Ikea). I taped together some pieces of paper to the exact size that my portfolio is, and added some "padding" to the size that I cut the cardboard.

Once the cardboard is cut to size, it's now time to cover it with the canvas fabric. I simply wrapped it like I was covering a book. I used glue to keep it in place. (Just find a multi purpose glue) Then set aside.

Making the template was the hardest part.. and if you decide to make this yourself, chances are high that we're not going to have the same measurements (hence why none are given here). I did do a mock up template on craft paper first to make sure that it all worked once it was put together. Bear in mind the thickness of your portfolio or your book, as you will need to add a margin to cater for this! To cut out, I used my NT Cutter L-500 (aka: stanley knife, carpet cutter, craft knife, etc), and metal ruler and cutting board. As I wanted this to be perfect. I snapped my blade fresh about two times to ensure it was super sharp!

Glue the covered backing board in place... and put everything together before you glue it to make sure everything fits into place!

To keep the 3 lower flaps together sew a button in place. I used this gorgeous button that I have from an old inherited button tin. Cut a slit in the top flap (making sure you line everything up first of course!)

The Finished Piece

Now, don't be fooled.. this took me hours to do! I thought it was going to be a quick job, but it wasn't. Maybe because I was being really pedantic about getting it perfect.. However, here's the trick to making this look good (and tut tut I didn't have the foresight to see this one coming...) If you hold the case up with the portfolio inside, the weight of the portfolio is too much and the corner start to show.. but never fear, there is an easy way to over come this.. just hold the case at the bottom when you do have to hold it, and problem solved.

Hope you enjoyed seeing how this came together!

Edible Spoons and Bread Soup Bowl - Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 15:38:00 PDT

Edible Soup Spoons and Bowl...

After recently discovering that I am indeed capable of making bread, in true style, I've tried to be as creative as I can! But, to be fair, "edible bread spoons" was my husband's idea. I'm sure I'm not the first to make these, but I dare not look (as I had a lot of fun making these up myself).

1. First you'll Need some dough. I decided to make a dough without yeast so that it was easier to make a flat spoon shape.

Ingredients: 325g flour, 1tbs salt, 1/2 tbs sugar, 200ml of warm water.

To make the dough: mix all the dry ingredients together, then add water and kneed with hands. Once you have a nice consistency, you're ready to go!

Prepare the work surface with flour

Dust Bowl with Flour

After rolling dough flat lay over bowl,
press into the blow shape, and cut off
excess dough around the edges.

Now that your bowl is ready, time to make the spoons!

Using a regular spoon, press top of
spoon into dough as shown,
then using the end of the spoon
do the same. (Try to get them
roughly the same size)

Using a knife draw lines from the

top curve to the bottom to

complete the spoon shape.

Next, align spoons in a (well I don't know what you call this tray???)... I don't even know what you would use it for? My neighbour gave a whole bunch to me a while ago. Can anyone shed any light?

Press the bowl of the spoon into the tray bowls.

Bake in Oven!!!

I baked mine in the oven for around 35 minutes at 195C (380F). Keep an eye on them, as cooking time will vary from each person.

Edible Bread Bowl and Spoon!

Filled with homemade Broccoli soup!

Verdict: My husband and I really enjoyed dinner tonight! It was cool to be eating from bread spoons - in fact, we didn't even use normal cutlery at all! The spoons were really crunchy, but still enjoyable.

Fancy a completely edible meal??

Oh!! Grass Flower Pom Poms

noreply@blogger.com (Kimanh xo) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 05:33:00 PDT

Gorgeous, aren't they? You may even get more of a buzz to find out that these gorgeous delights are made from grass!

Designer, Bernd Oette from Grassland, experimented for years to perfect his techniques of growing and and drying out grass.

You can find his grass applied to wall art, lamps, and other household furnishings.

Fancy a field on your wall? For 100 x 200 cm, it will set you back €480

Store Decor

What do you think?? I know, I "like" veeery much!