this moment

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

inspired by amanda soule

happiness is...

...wildflowers, tightly clutched in little hands.

this moment

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

inspired by amanda soule

recipe: pear and almond cake

This is a simple but delicious cake that won't leave you feeling too guilty for eating an extra-large slice. It's just perfect for serving at teatime after a big Sunday roast dinner.

2 oz caster sugar

2 oz light brown sugar

4 oz butter

2 eggs

1tsp almond essence

4 oz plain flour

1tsp baking powder

1 apple, grated

1 pear, grated

large handful of slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 180C/350F.

Cream sugar and butter together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add almond essence. Sift flour and baking powder and fold into wet ingredients. With a large metal spoon, fold in grated apple and pear.

Pour mixture into a greased and floured 8 inch cake tin and put into a pre-heated oven. After ten minutes, open oven door and pull cake out just enough to scatter slivered almonds over the top. Put back into oven and cook for a further 20 minutes or until sides of cake are pulling away from the tin and the top is golden.

This cake is lovely on its own, served with cream or topped with a glaze made from icing sugar and lemon juice.

this moment

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

inspired by amanda soule

tutorial: make a rainbow ring

Okay, I may be a teacher by profession, but writing up my first ever tutorial is proving a daunting task indeed. But I have enjoyed following other people's tutes so much that I think it's only fair that I have a go. I'm not even sure this is an original idea - it certainly seems too simple for it not to have been done before. But I haven't seen a tute for this one, so here goes...

rainbow ring

Materials:
a wooden ring - A suitable size for a child to hold. I found mine in a craft shop. It's about 5 inches in diameter; I think 3 inches would be better for a little hand, but my 21-month-old seems just fine with this larger one. Make sure it's very smooth - you may need to sand it with a very fine gauge sandpaper. You may also like to give it a polish with beeswax. I meant to, but ran out of time.
satin ribbon - Any width you like, though narrower ribbons will lay together more neatly on the ring. I cut mine into one metre lengths.
thread - in coordinating colours
needle
scissors

Step 1. Hem the first ribbon, about 1/4 inch, with a running stitch. Secure at the end but don't break your thread.














Step 2. Fold hemmed end over the wooden ring and backstitch close to the ring. (Please ignore how messy the orange, red and pink stitches are. This was my prototype and I was experimenting to find the strongest way to secure the ribbon onto the ring.)

Step 3. Repeat with each ribbon, ensuring all the seams are on the same side.

Step 4. Give your rainbow ring to the nearest child for hours of colorful fun!

(Phew! That wasn't so bad after all!)

easter joys

Hope your Easter was as colorful as ours.

(And be sure to come back tomorrow for my first ever tutorial!)

this moment

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

inspired by amanda soule