Last minute moments

Hello everyone.  My bag is packed and both my suitcase and cabin luggage are under the weight allowance.  I'm very happy about that.  Despite holiday preparations taking place, life has been going on much the same as usual.

This past week and half the weather turned from a very balmy autumn to a very wet and soggy autumn.  We've had heaps and heaps of rain and the days are much shorter.  To cheer myself up when it was so gloomy I lit some tea light candles.  There is something so nice about candle light, very warming and cheery.

One evening I had a yearn to crochet something different and decided to try this square which is part of a cushion cover.

The pattern is from a very old magazine, the (Australian) Woman's Day, March 18, 1974.  It was given to me by a best friend who is moving house and downsizing.

I enjoyed making the square but it was time consuming so I don't think I'll be making a blanket from these squares.

I had a need to make orange poppy seed muffins a couple of days ago and found an easy melt and mix recipe here. They were delicious with a cup of tea.

 This is my last post until I get to France and posting from our little laptop to test it's working o.k.  Fingers crossed.  Have a wonderful weekend whatever you are doing.

Anne  xx

Quietly busy

It's very quiet here at Ungardened Moments.  I've been going about the business of preparations for our holiday, some cooking in the freezer for the girls, writing out helpful lists like where to find their favourite recipes, those tried and tested, where to buy the dog and chook food, how often to water my pot plants etc.  Nothing to taxing on my brain.

I've been running through my list of essentials to pack, peppermint tea with ginger, Vegemite, yes I said Vegemite, which can bought in a jar or a tube especially for travel.  I found a supplier of melamine cutlery to take for our alfresco picnics in France and Italy, ordering some so the weight of my bag (currently a bit of a problem) will be minimised.

The cutlery and other wonderful things to buy were found here.  I think I have covered most things and what has not been covered will procured in the northern hemisphere.

Other than that, I've been contemplating life and changes and what it all means.  I wrote a bit of an essay on my other blog http://standingupwhenfallingdown.blogspot.com.au  for those of you interested in my more reflective musings.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend ahead,

Anne  xx

Getting organised and enjoying the day

 Hi everyone, I hope you are all having a lovely weekend.  Much organising is happening at the moment and I've started getting some things ready for our overseas holiday.   In the suitcase is a little first aid kit, my travel sewing kit, laundry bits and pieces including a little bottle of liquid wash, a pegless clothesline and a travel iron.  The cabin bag is partially packed too with my pencil, pens and sketchbook and a spare change of clothes should our luggage go missing for a bit.  Something else in the suitcase are these.

There might be opportunities for picnics involving baguettes, Italian bread, French and Italian cheeses and wine perhaps with some fresh berries.  Best to be prepared.  Also tucked away with this little lot is a bottle opener.  No point in having wine glasses and wine without a bottle opener.  Don't worry, the glasses are unbreakable and the plates, bowls and mugs melamine.

I have been taking long walks everyday in a bid to get so fit (ha, ha) as we will be doing a lot of walking in Europe.  The autumn weather has been glorious here which has made walking such a delight.  Today while walking I enjoyed looking at these lime green leaves starting to change colour, I can see a few yellow ones here and there.

Walking through fallen autumn leaves and enjoying the crunching noise they made when I stepped on them.

And taking my dog Sophie with me I went for a walk.  I'm going to miss her so much.  She's not very happy with me in this photo as I kept stopping to take photos and she wanted to walk.

This evening hubby and I spent a lovely couple of hours chatting with our neighbours about our overseas holiday and picking up some tips from their travel experiences in Europe.  After a bottle or two of bubbly and some delicious snacks, we were all feeling quite merry and mellow.  Good times!

 Tomorrow will be another glorious sunny day which means another lovely walk for Sophie and me and perhaps a spot more packing.

Anne xx

Crafting while travelling

Hello, I have a question for you.  If you were going on an overseas holiday for two months and had limited room for craft projects such as crochet (all that yarn), what would you do instead?

We will be very busy taking in the sights and generally having a great time, but there will be moments when I'll need to occupy the creative part of my being otherwise I will go nuts.  I plan on taking a sketchbook and watercolour pencils.  Any other ideas for something small and portable would be very much appreciated.

Thanks,

Anne  xx

 Today turned really cold, winter cold and I was thinking about making something warming and tasty and decided on these.

They are muffins, muffins that really do taste like donuts.  I discovered these on Deb's blog, Works in Progress..., thought they sounded delicious and they are.

Muffins That Taste Like Doughnuts

Ingredients

• 1-¾ cups Flour
• 1-½ teaspoons Baking Powder
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoon Nutmeg
• ½ teaspoons Cinnamon
• ⅓ cup Oil (I used Sunflower oil)
• ¾ cup White Sugar
• 1 whole Egg
• ¾ cup Milk
 
• FOR THE TOPPING:
• ¼ cup Butter
• ⅓ cup White Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

Preparation Instructions

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon.
Combine oil, sugar, egg and milk. Add dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
Bake at 180C (350F) degrees for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a bowl. Combine the white sugar with the cinnamon in another bowl.
Turn muffins out while still hot. Dip muffins in butter, then into the sugar/cinnamon mix. Let cool. 
Makes 12

Original recipe found at  http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/07/muffins-that-taste-like-doughnuts/ 
.......................................
 
We didn't let them cool.  We all tried them warm and they were delicious.  Hubby was outside working on some house maintenance, he was shivering and most appreciative of a hot doughnut tasting muffin.  I will definitely be making these again.


Wishing you all a lovely week.


Anne  xx

Sewing and painting

Why is it that clothes always seem wear out at the same time?  I recently had to replace some pyjama pants as the old ones were well and truly worn out.  So I went shopping and found some gorgeous PJ pants in a lovely blue paisley design.  I LOVE paisley.  Put them together with a tank or a t-shirt and I think I'm set for PJs.  Not so as I've notice my other PJ pants are wearing so thin they have a hole in them.  I didn't particularly feel like going out and buying another pair and hit on the idea of making some.  I didn't fancy buying a pattern so I dug out this pattern I've had tucked away for years and decided to make my PJs from the pants pattern.

Sorry about the the terrible photo.

I didn't fancy buying fabric either and decided to use up some I had intended to use for another project but never got around to.  So here are my new PJ pants, lary and colourful, just perfect for a good nights sleep don't you think?!

I did make the pants not the shorts, I've just folded them up for the photo.  Just look at that fabric, you can't go wrong with stripes polka dots and flowers now can you?    These pants were very easy to make but I did make a couple of mistakes.  I sewed the buttonholes for the ties on the back of the waist band instead of the front.  So now I have buttonholes on the back and the front.  :)  The pants were also too long between the waist and the crotch so I folded the excess fabric up under the waist band and sewed it down.  Now it just looks like a band that was always meant to be there.  I'm very happy how they turned out even after the extra fiddling.

I have done more work on my painting, this time concentrating on one of the paintings in the background of the photo.  This was a new experience for me as there is very little colour in the painting and have had to get the face shape by using shadowing from a very limited palette.  The man looks quite fierce in the photo so that's how I've painted him.

I've concentrated on the face only and have more work to do on the background part of this small painting.

I hope everyone is enjoying the Easter break. Thanks for stopping by.

Anne  xx

Oil painting update

Hi everyone, it's time for an oil painting update.  It's been rather a long time since the last one mainly because I have been incredibly frustrated with my progress.  You may remember I am working on a portrait, the same model/lady from the previous portrait I completed.  The angle of the face is completely different and oh so difficult to paint.  I have repainted the shape of her face three times trying to get the proportions and shape right.  Just when I thought it was o.k., yep, the teacher reworked it.

I have decided that my teacher and I see things very differently when it comes to shapes, proportions and even colour.  I do know that my first three attempts were less than perfect but I'm afraid my teachers reworking looked hideous.  I have discovered that I paint so much better at home in my own time at my own pace.  As it is school holidays, painting and yoga classes are taking a break, so I thought this would be the perfect time to get my canvas, brushes and paints out to see what would happen.

I have reworked the face once more and here she is with part of her face painted.

Now a close up of her face.

I worked on the painting a little more today.

And another close up.

You can see that I've worked more on the hair (not finished yet), the eyes, nose, mouth, lights and darks to form shadows and shapes.  Still have that ear to tackle.  My lady has a poutier mouth and smaller nose than the model in the picture, but overall I'm extremely happy and very proud this is my own work.  Monday night I was ready to give up as nothing was working.  But I have a stubborn streak and just had to have another go. 

Thank you so much for being patient with me while I share something with you I love to do.

Have a wonderful day/evening,

Anne  xx

The cat that likes corn

We once had a cat that ate fettuccine and other interesting non cat food.  We now have a cat that likes corn on the cob.  Here is Stripey tucking in to what is left of my corn cob.

Some people might be grossed out by this I suppose but think it's really funny.  He really gets into it, trying to eat it like a piece of meet.  Bits of corn go flying and he makes the funniest noises while he is slurping, licking and chewing and usually purring all the while.  Guess you have to be a cat lover.

Anne  xx

A bunch of flowers

There are some wonderfully inspiring people in bog land and one such inspiration for me is Kirsty from Sixty One A.  Kirsty is an artist and crafter.  She makes amazing art pieces from driftwood she finds on the beach in Cornwall, sews creatures from the sea and land and creates spectacular collages.  It is her collages that have inspired me to try one of my own.

I thought I would start with something simple, a bunch of flowers in a vase.  I started by drawing a basic outline of my picture on watercolour paper and started building up the picture by gluing small pieces of magazine paper.  Drawing on (pardon the pun) my knowledge of oil painting techniques, I tried to use lights and darks to create shadows and shapes.

I used paper pieces that included patterns and writing to add interest which I found helped make the picture more realistic, to my eyes anyway.  :)  When I was happy with the collage, I lightly shaded watercolour pencil around the picture.  Here are a few close ups to show some more detail.

I had a lot of fun doing this and spent a good four hours on it.  Of course when I'm immersed in anything artistic, the time just disappears.  I'd love to know what you think of my bunch of flowers.

 Thanks for stopping by for a visit and a big welcome to my new follower. 

Enjoy your Sunday,

Anne  xx

P.S.  I sign this type of artwork as Damelia in honour of my Grandma.  Damelia is a combination of her two names Dorothy and Amelia.