Katzentisch

Hearts for Haiti - Something for Your Home

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 09:33:00 +0000

Today I'll show you some of my favourites from the HeartsforHaiti shop's section 'For Your Home'. Clicking on the picture will lead you to the article directly.

Let's start with these fresh cotton canvas coasters. Four of them come with their own pouch. Donated by CinnamonBreeze:

This is one of the most impressive ideas I've ever come across: a chandelier made of - guess what? - paperclips!!! These ordinary small thingies lying around everywhere in every office. I couldn't believe it and got the tutorial from super kind donator ReDesignTechnologies through the HeartsforHaiti shop. I haven't yet started with my chandelier but I will. It's not as difficult as it may seem. You can do this, too!

A metal salvaged light switch plate brought to new life with a vintage black and white image, donated by littlegreenthings:

The last item for today is a cute vintage linen pillow cover with a new layered burlap flower, donated by myadobecottage:

All items ship worldwide for free, if you buy them through HeartsforHaiti. Remember, all proceeds (minus fees) of this shop go to Doctors without Borders to help Haiti.

All pictures in this post are the property of (from top) Cinnamonbreeze, ReDesignTechnologies, littlegreenthings and myadobecottage.

Hearts for Haiti - Some of my Favourite Items

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0000

Yesterday I told you about the gorgeous HeartsforHaiti shop on Etsy. There are more than 1000 items for sale currently and every time you go there you will discover something new. At least I do.

I will show you randomly some of my favourite items. Today it is some amazing jewellery. Clicking on the pictures will lead you to the listings in the HeartsforHaiti shop directly.

An embossed Sterling Silver broken heart necklace, donated by archaic design:

A Sterling Silver knit ring with a freshwater pearl, donated by palleiko designs:

A Sterling Silver rosemary leaf necklace molded off of a real rosemary leaf, donated by Hightower Botanicals:

And finally for today another Sterling Silver hand cut heart necklace, donated by Ggestalt:

You may have realised that all these wonderful pieces are made from Sterling Silver. Yes, I love Sterling Silver! Such pieces made from it immediately get my full attention ♥

All these beauties are completely handmade. They all ship for free but, you may well contact the donators directly for insured shipping.

All HeartsforHaiti proceeds (minus fees) go to Doctors without Borders to help Haiti.

Images in this post are the property of (from top) archaicdesign, palleikodesigns, HightowerBotanicals and Ggestalt.

Hearts for Haiti - Fundraising on Etsy

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 10:43:00 +0000

I'm owing you this since some time already. Although it may be a good idea to bring it now with the disaster in Haiti having disappeared from the front pages already.

There are lots of sellers on Etsy donating percentages of their proceeds to help Haiti. You will find them easily, if you search for 'Haiti'.

I want to recommend warmly especially this shop to you: HeartsforHaiti.

Victoria aka exlibrishandmade had the idea and started organising this shop entirely dedicated to raise money for helping Haiti. 100% of the shop proceeds (minus Etsy and PayPal fees) go to Doctors Without Borders.

The shop is run by volunteers and all items for sale are donated by Etsy sellers from all over the world. These gorgeous sellers not only give away their items for free they also take the shipping costs. All items have free shipping and most sellers even ship worldwide.

As of 10:26pm EST 2/5/10 HeartsforHaiti has raised $27,894.81 (after fees) for Doctors Without Borders!!!

There are currently 1125 items for sale in this shop! If you are looking for something nice and want to help Haiti, you definitely should browse this shop.

There is also a very interesting blog giving some background information about the shop, its volunteers and the money transfer to Doctors Without Borders. Go and check it out!

***The heart is property of HeartsforHaiti***

Yet Another Treasury

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 14:29:00 +0000

Something to laugh! I couldn't resist and had to visualise my New Year's resolutions. And again I've found some gorgeous Etsy sellers. Jump in as long as this treasury is alive!

Light Grey-Sea-Green-Blue

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 07:03:00 +0000

Some days ago I wrote about the colour we had chosen for my nephew's new room. The original article you'll find here. I wanted to go for Dulux paint and was told that it no longer is available in Germany.

I investigated and, yes, in fact you cannot get Dulux in Germany anymore. ICI Paints, whose brand Dulux was, has been taken over by AkzoNobel in The Netherlands in January 2008. In England it's still available (I'm envious!). It took me quite a while to find out all these details because AkzoNobel's website still leads to a German Dulux page which even leads to an online shop! Finally I had to ring them to get the facts. What a rubbish is that! A company's website should give you realtime information. The way it is done here is completely useless.

I was so angry that I didn't even want to check AkzoNobel's replacement paint that was offered on the phone. Even worse, the replacement paint is not for sale in those very few good German DIY-markets but in the loud and cheap crap markets. Oh no!

Looking for alternatives I ended up with Alpina, a German manufacturer, well known for their quality but not so well known for a modern range of colours. But at least you can get mixed nearly any colour you want.

Went back to my favourite DIY-market KNAUBER just around the corner. They do mix Alpina paints. Yeah!

We looked through the colour charts and picked menta C4. That's exactly what we wanted. And guess what the saleswoman said? 'The colour you've chosen is an American colour'. WOW! She really knows her job! That's why I love this shop.
.

Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 09:21:00 +0000

Wishing you a Happy New Year with this lovely helleborus flower and bud covered with snow ♥♥♥

And don't forget to feed your birds and all the other animals who are suffering because again it has become so cold!

New Treasury!

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:46:00 +0000

Have been dealing with these colours so much during the last few days - I had to make an Etsy treasury out of them. I love the items I've found. There are so many gorgeous sellers on Etsy!

Check out this treasury as long as it is alive. Enjoy!!

A New Room for a Young Guy

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 08:12:00 +0000

Back to normal. My brother's son will get a new room in my brother's old house. They asked me for some help with decorating because the footprint is a bit difficult and the budget is low.

The room is 4 x 4 metres (roughly 13' x 13' feet) with a window 2 metres (6.5') wide. The window sits around 80 cm (31.5") above the floor with the heating underneath. It's one of these awful German windows with a 1/3 : 2/3 division, the most useless and ugliest window format you can imagine. The floor still has the lovely original old wooden floor boards, freshly renovated.

The boy wants a new bed, 140 x 200 cm (55" x 78.7" inches) and he wants it to be placed in a corner. Already existing are: a wardrobe 200 cm long (78.7") and 60 cm (23.6") deep with medium brown wooden shutters, a desk 80 cm (31.5") deep and 250 cm (98.4") long. The desk needs to be cut. The boy doesn't need such a huge desk anymore. But of course he needs a place for his PC.

He's got a huge TV (1 metre wide = 39.4") and he wants a comfortable seating place for guests. Because there is not enough space left for a couch we decided to add one comfortable chair with a side table. Additional seating will be on the bed which should be covered with a thick and sturdy bedspread for protection and lots of cushions for additional comfort.

That's the draft I came up with.

Biggest problem was the desk. It needs to be placed in a way that avoids glare on the monitor. In front of the window may have been a possibility but placed against a wall has the additional benefit of adding some shelves above the desk (which I still have and will be glad to give). Cutting off one corner of the desk lets it fit in more smoothly with the 'bedline' and avoids clashing the window sash with the boy's back (note: in Germany most windows open into a room!).

One major problem was (and still is) finding the right colours for this room. My nephew wanted it airy and light but didn't have a special preference. To be honest, he had no idea which colour he wanted.

There is a lot of white in this room, the window frames, the door with its frame, the skirting, the ceiling. To make this fresh white pop out there should be colour around it. And there's a lot of warm wood in slightly different tones, the floor, the wardrobe's shutters, the desk, maybe an additional bookcase. To get together these different warm tones they should be integrated into something neutral or cool.

Then there's the room facing north-east which requires a slightly warmer colour.

Finally we agreed in using a very light grey-sea-green-blue (you know what I mean??) for the walls and for some of the accessories to come to an overall look as shown in my draft. (As I couldn't show the wall colour in the bird's eye view I just coulored a few items to give the overall impression).

Now I have to try to buy this very light grey-sea-green-blue. Wanted to go for Dulux, the only paint available in Germany that comes in very good quality and in a good range of colours. Just to find out yesterday that Dulux no longer is offered in Germany. I can't believe it. Have to go and investigate.

Last Minute Table Decoration

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 01:04:00 +0000

Still looking for a fuss free table decoration?

What about this? Olive twigs and almonds add a slightly Italian touch to a marbled table top. Put tea candles in small pastry tins for a subtle lustre.

As simple as can be. Tea candles in old jam jars and some holly twigs, all scattered with tiny golden stars.

Raiding the cupboards. Small ivies in a baking tin, cookie cutters and tea candles in pastry tins. Nuts and almonds complement a small wooden teddy bear.

Survivalist

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 09:52:00 +0000

Heavy frost since Friday afternoon, this morning being -10°C (= +14°F). Just a little bit of snow thus no protection.

Then I found this:

It's 'The Fairy', a well known little rose. I didn't know, the flowers are that hardy. OK, it's standing close to the house - but outside. Unbelievable!

The First Snow!!

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 09:00:00 +0000

OK, just a tiny bit ;-) But it will stay because it has been freezing since a few days now. My garden table looks like being dusted with icing sugar. Nice.

The Garden Table in Winter

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 09:19:00 +0000

When it's too cold for dining outside the garden table is a great place to show some of your decorative items. Instead of getting lost in some dull garden corners or looking out of place somewhere on the ground especially smaller objects benefit from this small, defined place at prominent level.

A bare table looks somewhat inhospitable and boring but can you imagine it brimming with spring bulbs in flower or decorated with moss, peeling bark and rose hips in autumn?

Always on my table, my old hurricane lamp is the only one that deserves its name. No matter what the weather is, even in the heaviest of rain or storm the candle inside keeps burning. Unfortunately I don't know where to get another one. If somebody knows, please, please tell me!

This winter I wanted to do it simple. Just some twigs and broken branches, a bit of laurel and holly and my old concrete globes which have bleached out over the years.

Then I had to cut back a large hydrangea to keep free a garden path in case of heavy snow. The hydrangea flowers were faded but not brown and I didn't have the heart to throw them on the compost heap.

My simple table decoration needed some colour, and so I added these hydrangea flower heads to it. Now it looks opulent and baroque. Completely different to what I wanted – but I like it!

Birdfeeder - revised

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 11:15:00 +0000

My garden birds desperately need a new feeder! The old thing I'm using for 13 years now. No wonder that the roof has got holes and that the whole construction has become very unstable.

I've started already to built a new one - the ultimate bird feeder ;-) That kind of thing you can't buy. Because there's always something wrong with shop bought bird feeders.

But the weather forecast has announced frost and snow. Looking for a fast solution I decided to revise the old bird feeder. Put in some additional screws and covered the roof with a thick plastic sheet stapled underneath.

It looked horrible. Glaring plastic in my garden. OMG! Stapled some twine across the roof and interweaved it with ivy and some laurel.

Looks like a soldier's helmet in a manoeuvre now. But has served it's purpose. Put up yesterday afternoon, this morning flocks of hungry birds have taken possession of it.

(Giving myself a pat on the back ;-))

A Girl's Best Friends

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 05:56:00 +0000

Still looking for that very special Christmas gift? What about these gorgeous pieces of jewellery from Etsy-Seller theBeadAerie?

This bracelet really is a statement! Chunky pieces of turquoise combined with white magnasite, fossilized coral and a Kazuri clay bead from Kenya, all put together with Sterling Silver that has been oxidized and polished to a soft patina. This is the first piece that caught my attention.

When Peggy later added this necklace I've been lost completely. Mookaite jasper beads in an incredible colour range, again with oxidized Sterling Silver. These soft colours and the beads of different sizes are just amazing!

Now we come to earrings - my favourite. There are a lot of different earrings in this shop. These here can go with every outfit. Bright and oxidized Sterling Silver with moonstones - what a combination!

That's jewellery for real women, not for bling-bling-girlies. Of course everything is handmade. But not expensive at all. If you want one of these pieces - hurry up! Before I do.

(All photos in this post are copyrighted by theBeadArie)

Etsy-Treasury

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 06:37:00 +0000

This is the latest treasury I created. Lots of gorgeous Etsy sellers and their lovely items. Although the treasury is almost feline I started with that woodpecker fledgling right in the middle. What a great and funny photo! It's from MNHPhotography. I guess, I've to get it.

Check out the complete treasury as long as it's alive!

BTW, the idea to mention this in my blog I've nicked from Erin Garrison whose lovely yawning white cat is featured in this treasury, too. She has mentioned it in her blog earlier. Thank you!

Brown Sugar - Make Your Own!

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:32:00 +0000

In Germany brown sugar neither is very common nor widely available, let alone in different varieties. When I read in Christina Geyer's excellent blog AmiExpat that you can even make your own brown sugar I had to give it a try.

You only need normal white sugar and molasses.

Molasses is what remains after sugar has been extracted from sugar cane. There are different grades of molasses, the thickest and most concentrated one called blackstrap molasses. I've never seen any other quality, so I presume this is the only one available here. Molasses has a very high content of minerals and vitamins making your brown sugar even a healthy thing.

In Germany you'll get molasses (= Molasse) from the Reformhaus.

Most recipes state just to combine plain white sugar with a bit of molasses with a fork. The first time I tried that and the result was good with just a few small lumps of molasses in it.

The second time I made brown sugar I couldn't get rid of the lumps. The third trial also had too much lumps. But then I remembered someone saying to reheat in a microwave shop bought brown sugar that had hardened. Obviously heat melts away these lumps.

My microwave currently is broken, so I tried a hot water bath.

I used around 750 g ( = 3 1/3 cups) white sugar and put it into a plastic bowl. The molasses I took out of the tin with the fork I used for mixing later. The molasses is fairly thick and stiff and this way you don't need an extra spoon from which to scrap off the sticky stuff. The amount I used roughly equals one tablespoon. Adding more molasses gives you a darker brown sugar.

In a large bowl thoroughly combine sugar and molasses with a fork. You will still have some lumps. Fill another bowl, slightly larger than the first one, with some boiling water. Put in the sugar bowl and go on stiring until sugar and molasses are well blended and most lumps have disappeared. Take care not to spill water into the sugar bowl!

Take the sugar bowl out of the water, let the mixture cool down and dampen off, mixing through it every now and then. Then fill into an airtight jar or container.

Voilà! There's your brown sugar!

If you want to use brown sugar in cakes or in desserts that are going to be mixed with a handmixer or food processor, you can simply add white sugar and molasses from the tin.

Molasses gives a somewhat silky texture to food. If you add some brown sugar e.g. to a natural low fat yogurt, it will make this very creamy without adding any fat.

Puppy's Heaven

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:55:00 +0000

Some time ago I introduced pet-interiors to you, a German manufacturer of the nicest and best quality pet beds I've ever seen. The article with great pics you'll find here.

I'm still owing you another dog bed from this company. This cushion made from real leather has a special filling of high quality latex flakes. As with all their cushions this filling was developed to give pets maximum comfort.

This cushion is available in either rectangular shape or in an organic shape looking like a stone.

More details about the company you'll find on their website
www.pet-interiors.de. They do ship internationally!

No, the cushion comes without the puppy!
(All photos in this post are copyrighted by pet-interiors)

New Rocking Horse Prints!

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:54:00 +0000

If you like rocking horses you may like my two new prints, too. I took my photos of the Dappled Grey and the small mahogany rocking horse and gave them a vintage feel with some discolouration, blur and scratches.

You'll find them in my Etsy shop www.SimplyPictures.etsy.com. The price for one print is $ 23.00 plus shipping or $ 41.00 plus shipping for both prints.

That's how they would look being framed with a bit of outer trimming but without matting in standard frames size 23 x 23 cm = 9” x 9” from IKEA. The frames are not included! The size is scaled properly - look at the wine bottles!

Simple & Rustic Apple Tarte

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:59:00 +0000

This is the best time of the year for simple and rustic cakes. After a walk on a cold and foggy November afternoon, with a fresh hot coffee it will enliven your soul and body.

The base of this apple tarte is not made with the traditional yeast dough but with this fast and easy quark oil dough.

For a baking tin of around 25-30 cm (= 10-12 inches) in diam you will need:

1 recipe quark oil dough

1 recipe vanilla quark (see below)

3 large apples

Apricot glaze to taste

Preheat the oven to 180°C (= 356°F) . Slightly grease and flour the baking tin.

Prepare the quark oil dough and line the tin with it. Slightly prick it with a fork.

Vanilla quark layer

250 g (= 8.8 oz) full-fat quark (the fattest you can get)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 package custard powder or blancmange powder for cooking*

Just whisk these three things together and put the cream into the pan on top of the dough spreading it evenly across the bottom.

* In Germany this is old fashioned 'Vanille-Puddingpulver zum Kochen'. It is important to use one that needs to be cooked. One package is about 38 g (= 1.34 oz) and sufficient for ½ litre milk. But don't use the milk here!

There is no need for this vanilla quark layer but it is a nice addition and really done in a few seconds.

Wash and core the apples, cut them into wedges. You don't need to peel them – it's a rustic tarte. But if you have no teeth or if the peel is very firm, of course you may do so.

Place the apples on top of the vanilla quark cream. If you like, sprinkle with sugar. (I had sprinkled it with brown sugar - together with the apricot glaze that's a bit too much)

Put it into the oven for around 40 minutes until it's crisp and golden brown.

If you'd like it being glazed with abricotage, do this immediately after you get it out of the oven. Instead you can leave it to cool and dust it with powdered sugar.

Eaten still warm with a dollop of vanilla or caramel ice cream would be heaven!

Yeast Dough Substitute: Quark Oil Dough

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:10:00 +0000

I'm not quite sure whether this is an appropriate translation of the German term Quark-Öl-Teig. However, if you are afraid of making yeast dough or if you don't have the time, a dough made of quark and oil is an easy and fast alternative.

Quark is a soft curd cheese being widely available in most countries now. This quark oil dough will not stick to your fingers and it doesn't need any time to rise as a yeast dough does. Taste and structure are very similar but the quark oil dough should be eaten freshly baked. It can be used for sweet and savoury dishes, especially for tartes and quiches but also for rolled cakes like 'Mohnstriezel' e.g. I don't think you can make bread out of it but maybe someone will try?

For a sweet tarte in a baking tin or springform of around 25 – 30 cm ( = 10 – 12 inches) in diam you'll need:

125 g (= 4.4 oz) low-fat quark
5 tablespoons neutral oil (like sunflower oil e.g.)
5 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons sugar
200 g ( = 2 cups) flour
1 level teaspoon baking powder
1 pinch of salt
a bit of vanilla to taste

Whisk the quark with oil, milk, sugar, vanilla and salt. Mix the flour with the baking powder and add this to the wet ingredients. Roughly incorporate the flour with a wooden spoon or the dough hooks of your hand mixer or food processor. Then knead it all together by hand just until it's smooth and pliable.

This is all done very easily and fast. No need to bring the ingredients to room temperature.

Slightly grease and flour the baking tin. Roll out the dough a bit larger than the tin's diameter, put it into the tin and press it lightly to form a low rim. Prick the bottom with a fork.

It's ready now to be topped with whatever you can bake in an oven – apples and nuts, streusel, quark fillings, plums, pears, cherries – the choice is endless.

In a preheated oven it will bake around 40 minutes at around 180°C (= 356°F). This is depending on your oven and on the topping.

For a savoury dish like a quiche or pizza just leave off the sugar and vanilla, but you may add a little bit black pepper and nutmeg.

If you want your dough to have a healthier colour you can add an egg yolk, but then you should reduce the milk accordingly.

To cover a complete baking sheet just double the quantity.

Enjoy!

L'Abricotage (Apricot Glaze)

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:09:00 +0000

Have you ever wondered how this shiny cover on professionally made cakes and tartes is achieved? This simple and delicious glaze comes from France and there it is called abricotage.

I'm a bit addicted to this glaze. It does not only look gorgeous, it prevents the cake from drying out, keeps fruit fresh and with its slightly sour taste it adds that little kick to an otherwise bland thingy.

There are lots of time consuming recipes around of how to make it from fresh apricots. I've never done that. Fresh apricots with lots of flavour are hardly available here.

You better get the best quality apricot jam or confiture on offer and start from there.

Pour a complete jar of shop bought apricot confiture into a bowl. Purée it in a food processor or with a hand mixer with a chopping blade attached until it is completely smooth and without any bits or pieces. It will look a bit milky at that stage due to all the tiny air bubbles being trapped. Don't worry about that.
Put the purée back into the jar, close and store in the fridge. It stores for several weeks due to its high sugar content.

If you want to glaze something, just put a few spoons full of jam into a small pot, add a little water or rum and bring it just to the boil. Don't' add to much liquid, it will become thinner when getting hot anyway. If it gets too thin, you can't apply it without running.

With a cooking brush apply the hot glaze to the hot cake or cookie. It will dry very fast and leave a shiny surface. If you want to cover fresh fruit on a cake, of course you wouldn't heat the fruit. But the glaze always has to be as hot as can be when applying.

That's it! Try it – you'll love it.

Glazed free-formed quark tarte.

The Girl

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:22:00 +0000

Finally, this is the very first rocking horse I got my hands on. She's a girl, definitely. Somebody has braided her mane.

Look how she's keeping her head. Wants to be hugged.

PS: No, these are no miniature horses! Each of them can be ridden safely by an adult being not too heavy.

Kid Brother

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000

He is slightly smaller than the large mahogany shown first. But with his bow rocker he's still reaching a length of 1.74 metres (= 68.5 inches). Same stable in every respect.

And again, he's not for sale :-)

Another Beauty

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:41:00 +0000

Want some more? Here we go:

Next time you're looking at Toys'R'Us you first come back here, ok?

The World's Finest Rocking Horse

noreply@blogger.com (Molly) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:15:00 +0000

Well, we talked about English Rocking Horses earlier. When I looked through all my rocking horse photographs I found this:

This definitely is the finest rocking horse you can find on this planet. Made the traditional English way, completely hand carved - even mane and tail! The eyes are not made from glass, they are carved too and lacquered to this irresistible sheen. The wood? Solid mahogany, what else. Mounted on a bow rocker the overall length is 2 metres (= 79 inches). This is craftsmanship at the top stage!

The price? No, this horse is not for sale. Nobody who has ever touched such a piece of living wood would give it away. Be happy, it would break your bank anyway.