the patchwork dress

24 : gift for a newborn

Always a dilemma - what gift to give a newborn... gold, frankincense, or myrrh?

There have been a lot of new babies recently amongst my friends, and I started thinking about giving something that would be practical yet attractive, and original.  I know that soon these kids will have a room full of toys, piles of clothes that perhaps they may hardly wear before they are outgrown - and also the thought of the space these things will occupy..

So instead, I decided to give my friend a 'nursery' clutterbucket...

Filled with eco babywipes, nappy rash cream, bubble bath all from Wholefoods.. and a bundle of bibs and muslin squares - which I am fairly sure you can never have enough of, and should last through spurts of growth (and babyfood!)... plus a bar of chocolate for a late night treat.

There are still plenty of bags left in the shop - all ready for 2012!

18 : more Walk on the Wild Side

Speaking of animals, and of speaking animals - this is another of our favourite shows.. BBC's 'Walk on the WIld Side'.

The polecat/wolverine'y thing first up is a favourite, as is the panpipe playing squirrel... 

If you are bored one night, you can sit and watch a little list of clips here.

It's all suitable for kids too. 

Look out for Michael Jackson moonwalking bird, and "Siiiid... you've been a very naughty boy"...

15 : something to look forward to...

I seem to have fallen by the advent wayside a bit - perhaps it was overambitious to post each day, although I do hope to fill in a few more dates before Christmas..

Must admit I am excited about the prospect of seeing "Young Herriot" on BBC1, starting this Sunday for 3 consecutive nights on Monday and Tuesday too.  Earlier this year I worked on it as graphics art director, and it was one of the most enjoyable jobs that I've done.  Working in the period of 1930's (fairly impoverished) Glasgow really made me think about how things were done then - obviously no computers, but even typewriters may have been rare or used differently from after WW2... plus of course the wonderful addition of animals as subject matter.  

For me, the job involved anything from doing paintings of dogs to exam papers, photoshoots, and even just dressing images such as paintings and postcards for the walls of the various sets.  I even got to work with a signwriter, which is a craft I just adore.

Whatever they say, it is fun to work with animals - and filming the series is probably another dose of stories in itself!

There are a couple of clips here - featuring a gorgeous wee jack russell terrier..  and I found this clip on Youtube of the series producer talking about the background of 1930's Glasgow and Alf Wight's original writings as 'James Herriot'.

8 : blackbird cake

The wind is currently gusting round the house. We have 'red' warnings of wind across Scotland today and where we are normally quite protected in a little dip and the wind blows 'over' us - today it is tapping at the windows and rattling the roof - quite ferociously!

I moved the bird feeders to a lower level on the tree - partly for the birds and so that they don't fly off through a window at some point during the day!

Here are the blackbirds and others looking for food at low level during the storms.. You can just see robin in the top left corner, tucked in a bush.  These were taken from Inside! so they aren't all that clear.

If you don't already know this - a great way to attract blackbirds into your garden is to put out apple, pear or dried fruit such as raisins on the ground - they LOVE this and it trumps birdseed and peanuts for them.  Just be careful not to put down where a cat could jump out on them!

Yesterday I made a cake a blackbird would be proud of - and of course the apple peelings and chopping board remnants went out for them!  It's gluten free and dairy free (again!) with the consistency of a traditional farmhouse cake.  The apple and fruit keep it from being too dry, and the ground nuts give a wholemeal consistency.  It's also a good way to use up leftovers from making mincemeat.

Blackbird Cake (for humans... and blackbirds!) - Dairy + Gluten Free

*  *  *

6oz of margarine - eg non dairy 'Pure' (or butter for dairy eaters)

3oz demerara or brown sugar

7.5 oz  g free plain flour sifted with 2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder (see this post for good types of flour and baking powder)

3 eggs

a few dashes of rice milk (or equivalent)

1.5 apples (blackbirds get the half)

handful of mixed nuts - ground up in processor

handful each of plump raisins, chopped dates, cranberries, dried apricots (or to your taste)

*  *  *

• Line a deepish small baking tin with greaseproof paper

• Preheat the oven to 325F/160C/Gas 3

• Mix all the cake ingredients in a bowl and add a dash of rice milk, and keep mixing until the consistency is paler and  loose but not sloppy.

•  Add the chopped apple, nuts and dried fruit - folding it gently into the mix.

• Add to the cake tin, and cook in top third of oven for approx 1 hour - keep looking in after 45mins and test with a knife.  When the top is brown, the knife comes out without stickiness - altho this is a moist cake because of apple, don't overcook as it can dry out the sponge.

• Once cool, wrap tightly in paper/foil etc - as it can dry out quite quickly.

• Should last a couple of days.  Yum.

 

7 : discovering Rumer

I heard about Rumer Godden's autobiography through "Simple Abundance" (see Dec 2nd), and immediately knew I wanted to read them.  They are the most enchanting and moving books I've read this year, if not ever - the life of a writer, who seemed perpetually on the move from home to home.. the books detail each stage of her life, the people, animals and family that shared it with her - as she moved between the UK and India.

The first book "A Time to Dance..." starts with her childhood in England, and ends with the amazing story of her dream move to the poet's Dove House in Kashmir during WW2 - without spoiling it, lets just say I shared her heartbreak when she was 'forced' to leave under unimaginable circumstances.  An amazing woman of independent spirit ahead of her time.

The second volume is the continuation of her life as a professional writer starting with her return to England just after the war. Everything about her life fascinated me during the 2 books - and quite often brought me to tears!

The title "A House With Four Rooms" comes from the Indian expression that the individual is like a house with 4 rooms - the physical, the mental, the emotional, the spiritual - and RG's thought that all 4 should be visited each day.

Rumer Godden wrote "Black Narcissus" and many other books and children stories that were made into films or screenplays - the second book deals mostly with this part of her life.

I also discovered that she wrote the childrens story about a gypsy girl 'The Diddakoi' which had been made for Childrens BBC back in the 70's and was called "Kizzy" - one of the most effecting and memorable childrens drama of my childhood.

Both books were bought on Amazon in the "used" section under their titles for 1p - another simple abundance.

 

 

6 : sweet giveaways

Please do check out Ginny's 'December Love' over at Sweetmyrtle this month - where she is hosting a haven of handmade giveaways to spread seasonal cheer... keep looking in through December.

I once won one of Ginny's 'Morsbags' in a giveaway 2 years ago - and it is the one bag that I have used nearly every day since I got it and still love it's charcoal stripeyness - it is the perfect size and strength, and I've had lots of admiring comments about it over the years it's been in use!  it's also been through the wash several times and still looks as good as it did here...

Selvedge blog are also hosting their annual 12 days of Christmas giveaway with a textile themed giveaway each day - enter just by answering a question, they have some lovely prizes too.

all bags will be wrapped in handstamped paper with a handmade tag... ready for gifting!

5 : do you like mincemeat?

...do you like mince pies? some people hate mincemeat, some love it.

I fall into the latter camp, and this year decided to make my own, so that I could just put in things that we like.

the recipe is adapted from the earlier version of this book - but outside of the bulk of the raisins that I bought in especially - most other ingredients were already in the house.  I also thought it was quite an involved thing to make, but actually this is so simple and will take about 20 minutes- half an hour..

This version is good for vegetarians and gluten intolerant as it does not contain suet, or veggie suet which often contains wheat - it's made with a little dairy free margarine ('Pure' sunflower) and so is also Vegan.

*  *  *

Mincemeat (which is also vegan/dairy free)

(makes approx 4 jam jars worth: 1 jar is approx 6 mince pies)

1.5 lbs (675g) mixed dried fruit - (I used mainly raisins and added some favourites - dates, apricots,cranberries all chopped up).

10oz (275g) grated apple (approx 4-5 apples)

4oz (125g) chopped nuts (walnuts, or mixed nuts with brazils,pecans etc - chop small or whizz in processor)

2 tablespoons marmalade

2 tablespoons golden syrup

2oz (50g) brown/demerara sugar

2 teaspoons mixed spice (or make up your own blend eg with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger)

juice (and rind if liked) of a lemon

2 tablespoons each of brandy and sherry (or substitute wih a favourite alternative)

2oz (50g) melted (dairy free) margarine (or butter for non-vegan)

Add all the ingredients to a bowl more or less in order given (I grated the apple last and added the lemon to prevent it browning).  Leave to stand in covered bowl in fridge, stir occasionally - at least several hours/overnight before putting into jars.  

*  *  *

Make into mince pies using the gluten + dairy free shortcrust recipe from last year - note the pastry recipe is not vegan as contains egg - but you could experiment!  I've had so much positive feedback about this pastry recipe - really crumbly and short, but holds together well.

Hold the picture of the mince pie under your chin to see if you like mincemeat - alternatively leave me a comment, or let me know if you try either of these recipes and enjoy! x

4 : wholefood heaven

Thanks to a tip off from my friend Susan - thanks, Susan!xx

... yesterday we checked out the new Wholefoods supermarket that has come to Glasgow!

I did a trip to the US in 2004, and one of the highlights were the wholefood supermarkets in each town selling lots of alternative and healthy eating goods with a conscience.  I was actually stopped and asked if I needed help in the Alberquerque store as I was in a state of awe with my mouth open I think!

Well, I slightly revisited that state yesterday - as anyone with gluten or dairy intolerances will tell you, it gets a bit boring having to hunt for food, and having to go to several places to get specific things.  Now it is all here under one roof, with brands like Orgran, Ecover, several types of dairy free icecream - not just vanilla! which I have been finding increasingly difficult to get hold of locally - plus the luxury goods like the deli, the chocolate aisle will have your eyes on stalks.

You can also check out their site to see if there is one near you.

I have been saying for years "wouldn't it be great if" and now it's here!

3 : simple abundance

Its taken me a year to read this book.  Now I'm in December.

I mentioned it back on this post in April.  My reading habit has been to read 3 or so days at a time, and then catch up a few days later.. but it has been a consistent companion on my bedside table all through 2011, and Sarah Ban Breathnach a wise friend I check in with every few days.

It's like following a daily blog.  I discovered this book in true Simple Abundance style for 99p in a second hand shop.  The journey of the book is to discover greater personal authenticity through different areas of life during the year - there are no exercises as such, and the depth of the writing is much further than on first impression.  Through osmosis and contemplation you do the journey too.

Written/published in the 1990's so there are some giveaways such as mention of shoulder pads and pot pourri as aspirations - but you get the gist - mostly the writing is timeless for any woman (or man?) on a creative, spiritually inspired journey who is concerned about time, career, family, home and how to keep a sense of self throughout the year.

I am looking forward to dipping into it all over again in 2012!