Tea Party, yay!!

The last few days were spent in preparation for a welcome afternoon  tea party for dear friends from America. 

First on the agenda was a batch of salmon tartlets

http://pinterest.com/pin/425168021042150978/

I made them with a spelt/lard shortcrust. 

I also made a batch of herby cheese breads as you can also see in the above pic. 

http://pinterest.com/pin/425168021042150913/

I totally forgot the garnishes though as I had lovely nasturtium flowers that could have been put to use. 

Here they are with Philadelphia and fresh chives. 

As we were going for a picnic at a National Trust the next day, I also made a quick batch of cheese n onion pie and a wild garlic frittata. 

Mince pies may not be seasonal but they sure are nice. Look at the lovely colour of this eggy wash from my hens' eggs 3>

Tada:

I just had to make coffee swirl cupcakes too. 

The fudgy topping is scrumptious. 

http://pinterest.com/pin/425168021045101645/

This is currently my favourite cake. 

It is wholemeal organic spelt, lard, my hens' eggs, and sweetened with an array of preserved fruits. For this one I used apricots, figs, dates, sultanas, orange zest, cranberries and chopped cashew nuts all soaked in fresh orange juice.  

http://pinterest.com/pin/425168021043872769/

So glad I made a double batch so I still have some in the freezer. ;)

Home made syrups and cordials from wild foraged ingredients also made an appearance. 

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http://pinterest.com/pin/425168021045837696/

Tada :)

There was also home made liver pate with a butter crust in the spread along with crust-less salmon sandwiches and the compulsory cucumber sandwiches. 

Why can't this miraculously appear on my table every day at 2pm?!

Another Lloyd Loom upcycle.

I came across a promising little Lloyd Loom storage basket at the boot sale. 

It was in need of attention:

Lots of damage to the detailing:

The handles had seen better days and were beyond redemption too:

So off came the detailing and on went the chalk paint:

After a few coats, I upholstered the seat with curtain material and put a matching trim along the edges. 

It is now a perfect and practical addition to my bedroom. :)

You gotta love Lloyd Loom :)

X

Hearths and hearts

So how did I forget to blog about myfireplace upcycle?!

I bought this off an eBay auction for something like £20 complete with fire. 

It was in mint condition but the dark wood just wouldn't do. 

So it got the JJ home made chalk treatment!

When it was finished, I highlighted the detailing with dark wax:

You can see it beginning to take effect here. I was trying to match the look of my French style mantel clock:

Tada:

The previous fireplace that you've seen in countless other blogs was now rehomed in my dining room:

I know this was a few months ago but I blush to think that I STILL haven't secured it into the wall :O

Oh well, it looks ok for now :)

Toodles x 

Potty wind chimes.

I had a solar wind chime that had long since broken so I decided to do a quick upcycle involving a black metal candle holder and a few vintage china tea cups that were lacking saucers. 

I would had liked a small teapot for the top but I can't part with any more at the moment as I love them all too much. :(

It works beautifully. 

If only I dared to drill through metal, these would have ornate teaspoons to add to the theme. 

Needless to say, I am on the lookout for more materials to upcycle with for tea party themed windchimes :)

Natural beauty products.

My goal to be 'naturally beautiful' will be forever be an unreachably high one, but I have ditched a LOT of nasty chemical cocktails from my bedroom and bathroom of late and replaced them with completely natural alternatives. 

My favourite product is as simple as could be (a bit like me). 

ORANGE AND COCONUT BALM

It is just pure coconut oil and orange essential oil. (Orange oil has anti skin cancer benefits so its my personal choice)

That's it. 

All you do is mix thoroughly until the product becomes 'fluffy'

Then pot up. 

It is wonderful as a natural sunscreen, conditioner, cleanser, moisturiser, nail cream, etc etc etc. 

It really is my ultimate product that I use constantly every day. 

I adore it. 

The blending prevents it from going solid. 

Be generous with the oils. You can use others if you wish such as clove oil for a winter scent or lemon thyme, rosemary etc etc. 

Have a go yourself. 

NATURALLY TINTED BALM

This is my other daily product that I use. 

Merely coconut oil, beeswax, and beetroot powder.

Just gently melt over a low heat. 

And jar up!

How easy is that?

You can add essential oil if you wish for fragrance. Mint works well. 

I use it as a lip gloss and cheek stain. :)

My latest experimentation was with SHAMPOO!!

Sooo easy. 

It is just potato starch (farina), vinegar and water!

It doesn't look promising at first:

But then it starts to thicken and become translucent. 

Bottle up when done. 

I added lots of lavender oil to mine but you could add any you desired such as tea tree for a lice repellent version etc. 

Rye flour shampoo is another one ingredient version if you want to google for ratios. 

My next venture has to be an eye definer. 

I've bought activated charcoal to try but haven't yet got round to it :)

Have fun, peeps x

Ferments galore

A lot of summer has been devoted to a blossoming love affair with ferments. 

I made the usual whopping batch of elderflower wine made with wild yeasts:

I've experimented on fermented soft drinks with a home made ginger bug starter:

This is the ginger bug starter...

 Basically it's just grated ginger which you add to daily with more ginger and sugar which allows airborne friendly bacteria to inoculate it. 

It makes the best probiotic and naturally carbonated drinks for kids (and grown ups!). Think REAL ginger ale, REAL lemonade but all with the benefits of super strength probiotics!!

I've also fell I love with true sauerkraut. The best bit is having the heart of the cabbage all to myself when preparing the veg. 

(Such warm memories of mum giving it to me as a treat on a Saturday night when she used to prepare the veg for the next day's roast dinner!)

Here it is in its glory along with a probiotic pickle of red onion. :)

My favourite ferment of all is KOMBUCHA!!!

I drink it by the pint frequently. It's my daily beverage. 

I cannot make enough of the stuff so I've had to invest in further drinks dispensers since this pic :)

Last but by no means least is my sourdough bread. 

I don't have bread often but when I do it is home made with organic wholemeal spelt and wild yeast only. 

It looks so pretty too :)

I hope you look into naturally fermented foods. 

It is MASSIVELY beneficial for the immune system. 

One of the very best things you can do for your body. 

Toodles for now (or should that be, 'live long & prosper'?)

X

Fun n foraging frolics

As promised, first of possibly many backdated blogs as I browse through my photos. :)

A recent walk resulted in a beautiful little crop of rose hips and blackberries. :)

Not to overlook this wild free food, I decided to preserve it in liquid form. 

The blackberries were added to a kilo of unrefined sugar and a litre of water with some lemons and left to steep. 

When they had given up their berry goodness, I sieved through a cheese bag and bottled up. 

Kids are loving it as a cordial :)

The rose hips got the Second World War treatment...

I followed the official recipe issued during war time:

A bit of an ordeal to wash, top n tail the hips...

And to mince em...

And to boil em...

And to sieve em...

And to bottle em...

But it was worth it in the end...

Now what are you waiting for?!!

There's a larder out there, free for the picking!

X