scissors + tape

Lets Rock!

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 23:00:00 +0000

The last EVER Big Day Out festival is today. If you will be missing out on going this year, make musical history at home with some handmade musical goodness. Lets rock!

Gangsta Lean modules by MattBraun

Don't hide your records in a cupboard or under the stairs, now is the time to organise your collection!

Ukulele Ring Made in Hawaii by Cabin No.7

I need to get back into my ukulele practice...

10ft Instrument Cable in Spring Green and Orange with Straight Plugs by cordinated

Playing electric guitar, I've found there is a limited market regarding coloured amp leads (or anything remotely NOT black) - cordinated has the answer! Choose from a variety of lengths and colours to match your instrument of choice, there are even diy kits to make your own! Headphones and ipod cables are also available.

Synthmonger Fuzzy Wasp FX pedal

A new guitar pedal may be just what you need to inspire your next bit hit!

Pink Floyd Hoodie by SoYouThinkYouCanRock

SoYouThinkYouCanRock has an astonishing collection of over 800 band tees, tanks, sweaters and dresses; something for even the most alternative of music tastes.

Pink Friday Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:00:00 +0000

One of many gorgeous photos, this one is my favourite so far!

Ive fallen in love with the design blog Pink Friday! Filled with beautiful interiors, I highly recommend you take a visit! :) Makes me wish I could speak Swedish...

4 Ways To Sing In 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 05:00:00 +0000

[Photo by Gemma]

Suddenly New Years hits.

What is my New Year’s resolution?

I've often felt like we get rather engrossed in the hype of generating a 'resolution' and immersed in the deep desire of significant self-improvement, we can frequently become so consumed that we can tend to forget to reflect on all the great things we have actually accomplished so far in the past year.

It's important to take a step back. What have you accomplished this past year? Although you may not have entirely achieved your goals you put down at the start of last year, you may have achieved far greater things than you may think!

Organising for the oncoming year is easy; here are a few ideas to help make the transition into 2012 as smooth as possible:

1. Buy or make a new day planner or sketchbook and brainstorm and plan out your new goals and a timeline for achieving them. A planner allows you to look ahead to the next day, week or month and write down your to-do list of what you want to accomplish - big or small. Alternatively, plan out your days on Google Calendar instead.

2. Throw out your rubbish! Both physical and mental rubbish. Clean out your inbox, recycle old newspapers, lift old grudges, take old clothes to the op shop. Be ruthless! Keep a garbage bag on-hand & don’t be scared to throw things away, this can be very theraputic.

3. Change up your workspace. Try move your desk in front of a window to optimize natural light. Move a comfy chair and a lamp into your space for an alternative reading nook, hang up a new painting or print by an artist you love.

4. Establish a new morning routine. Whether taking a morning run around the block or making a fresh fruit smoothie for breakfast, add some extra spark to your current morning routine, you'll start the day feeling refreshed and energised and ready for the day ahead.

Feliz ano nuevo! Happy New Year!

Gemma.

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 20:00:00 +0000

Vintage 1950s Hello Santa Claus Christmas Greetings Card by poshtottydesignz

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! :)

I'm dreaming of a white christmas...

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 05:00:00 +0000

Being in the Southern Hemisphere New Zealand doesn't receive the traditional 'white christmas' so I thought I'd bring the snow to me instead. I wanted to bake some Christmas-themed goodies all December, this recipe is quick and easy and makes a great dessert to end a special Christmas meal.

[Photo by Gemma]

Sherry Balls

125g Butter (melted)
1 Egg
1T Cocoa
1 1/2T Sherry or Brandy
1/4 cup Sugar
250g packet of Wine Biscuits
2T Sultanas
2T chopped Almonds

Beat egg, cocoa, brandy and sugar, add butter when lukewarm. Crush biscuits mix with sultanas and almonds, add liquids, mix well. Form into small balls (about 1 inch in diameter, approx. 30 balls) and roll in coconut or chocolate hail. Chill till set (approx. 2 hours).

Enjoy! :)

Bananarama!

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 23:00:00 +0000

Sourced from the 1984 version of the New Zealand Woman's Weekly Cookbook, this cake would make a delightful accompaniment to any party or special occasion where there are many mouths to feed! This recipe makes a moist, rich cake, topped off with the addition of cream cheese icing, its sure to be a family favourite. This cake also makes a great alternative for those who are not fans of Christmas cake.

Banana Cake topped with Cream Cheese Icing.

The Cake:

250 grams Butter
1 & 1/2 cups Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla Essence
2 Eggs
3-4 ripe Bananas
3 cups Flour
4 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 cup milk

The Icing:

50 grams Butter
150 grams Cream Cheese
1/2 tsp Vanilla Essence
1 cup Icing Sugar

Please note: This is a doubled recipe (so it makes a very large cake). This cake would roughly serve around 16 people, with a decent sized piece. If you would like to make a smaller sized cake, half each of the above measurements.

1) Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla essence until fluffy.

(Required consistency)

2) Beat egg and add to the creamed mixture, beating well.

3) Mash bananas.

4) Add bananas to creamed mixture

5) Sift flour and baking powder.

6) Dissolve baking soda in milk.

7) Add the flour mixture and milk mixture alternately to the creamed mixture.

8) Pour into a large, deep, round cake tin.

Ensure the tin is well greased.

A cake tin with removable sides (as pictured here) is extremely useful in the making of this cake.

9) Put in oven, preheated to 185°C for just over an hour, or until a knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

(Of course, this time will vary from oven to oven.)

THE CAKE!

Remove from oven till cake is cool to touch
(this is important if you wish to ice the cake).

THE ICING:

1) Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl.

2) Mix all ingredients together.
(consistency required)

(Cake and Photos by Gemma & Andrew)

Enjoy!

Geek Chic

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 23:00:00 +0000

Long Keyboard Zipper Pouch by MadameCupcake

8bit Pixel Heart - A Geek at Heart by milkool

Talk nerdy to me funny geek tshirt by geekthings

Pokemon - Pair of Friendship Pokeball Necklaces by YellerCrakka

Keep Calm and Om Nom Print by LoveSickRobotStudios

Pizza-mea!

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 02:30:00 +0000

Photo by Gemma

I ADORE pizza! But I must admit, a yummy handmade pizza can take a lot of time to prepare from scratch which isn't handy when you are always on the go. I had this idea in mind for ages but never got around to trying it till now. This recipe is very diy and can be customised to suit any pizza lover's taste. Depending on the temperature of the sandwich press, the pizza takes about 5 minutes to prepare and cook. You can't beat it!

Equipment:

Sandwich/panini press
Cheese grater
Knife

Ingredients:
Depending what you like, its up to you!
I used:

1 Tortilla wrap
Cheese (Edam cheese as its what we had in the fridge)
Ham
Pizza sauce (Tomato puree with herbs and garlic)

In the panini press, heat up the tortilla wrap by setting the press to the 'melt' setting This hovers the panini press lid just over top of the wrap so it can puff up slightly. Do NOT put the lid down directly on top the wrap otherwise it will go hard (and make a great Frisbee).
Heating up the tortilla makes the pizza sauce easier to spread.
Whilst the wrap is still warm, add the toppings. Spread the pizza sauce, add shreaded ham then top with greated cheese.
Place the wrap back into the panini press long enough to just melt the cheese (it will keep cooking when you take it out), ensuring to stay on the 'melt' setting.
Cut up into quarters and enjoy!

Photo by Gemma

Snippets

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 02:00:00 +0000

[Photo by Gemma]

{this is glamorous}
"Design must seduce, shape, and more importantly, evoke an emotional response. --Conran & Partner". This is Glamorous is a design & lifestyle blog exploring design, interiors, travel, fashion, art, photography, adventures in love and the daily search for beautiful things.
Under the Paris Sky
"The Paris sky is blue and bright I want to fly with all my might Her legs are long her heart is high The chains are strong but so am I - Leonard Cohen"

Chanel.com News
Fashion news and trends from one of my favourite fashion designers.

Polyvore Blog
The Official Blog of Polyvore.com, an awesome resource for discovering new fashion trends and assemblages.

Hello, Hello!

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 23:00:00 +0000

Initial posts are always hard; it is like that first awkward conversation you have with someone, trying to break the ice. Long story short: this blog was originally a blog started in Sept 2008, a project I enjoyed but the blog did not have a plan, did not know what it was doing, or what it wanted to say; it was starting to gather some dust. I now have a plan.

So, a blog huh? What is the gist? Well I study a lot. I love craft but I live in a dorm room and my dorm room and I simply do not have the capacity to bring vast amounts of craft supplies or books cross-country. Our town library has shelves packed to the brim with craft books. This library is 120 kms away; so I partake in a lot of blog reading to get my craft fix instead. I wanted to compile an online resource in the form of a blog for crafters, students and regulars, who want 'craft on-the-go' projects or have limited supplies who want fun and fresh craft ideas and tasty recipes; sharing inspiration, projects, and tips from me to you.
I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing.

Gemma.

Ch-ch-cha changes...

noreply@blogger.com (Gemma) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 00:21:00 +0000

Due to a recent change of plan, this blog is going to undergo a short reconstruction period but content will resume shortly. If you have any questions, email me at madebygemma(at)hotmail(dot)com.
Thanks for your patience! :D

Gemma.