Hello!

I know, I always say it but i haven't posted in a while...

It's been a whole month and blah blah bla blah bla.......

(but i certainly will be posting next week - we're going on holidays to a really beautiful area(!)

Today I'm going to show you how to make this super easy bracelet with only 2 simple ingredients!

I've been planning this post for a while, so the photos are pretty bad as they were taken on my ipad. My old camera was broken and now that I have a better one (a sony rx100 mark i), I wish I had waited! Ok, that's enough blabbering on.

here's what you'll need: 

clay in desired colour/s, scissors,1-2 colours of string (one must be quite thick), clay roller/ round pen, something to poke holes with.

instructions:

i. roll clay into a ball, then flatten it into a 5-10mm thick circle. Shown above is how to make a marbling effect. Combine two colours, but not completely. Marbling is completely optional.

 ii. cut the circles in half. Add dots, stripes or anything you want + two holes to thread the string through. Bake them according to package / website. Sculpey Premo must be baked for 30 mins @ 130C.

iii. (optional) once baked, drop the beads into cold water to harden quickly. Or, you could be patient and let them cool down for a few hours or until cold enough to handle (they may be a bit bendy).

iv. thread the thinner string through the bead, and attach a small bead, or tie a large knot at each end.

v. now, here's the tricky part (which actually isn't too hard). Make the strings overlap (shown in step iv / 4), and tie a knot, leaving quite a bit of thread loose. wrap around multiple times, and tie it up tightly. Assure that you can move the ends of the bracelet, and that you can't pull the bead / knot through. If you're a bit confused, I would suggest searching up "adjustable knot" on youtube or something, that's probably a lot more helpful.

vi. aaaand you're done! Just pull the ends to tighten it. Make sure the ends aren't too long or it will be super awkward to wear. If you plan on selling something with the same kind of knot try it on a few people and determine the length of the ends by making sure it fits larger wrists, but doesn't hang too low on other's.

Oh, and here are a few photos from my new camera.

4pm view off the deck

narla - a bit over-exposed, but i still love this shot

my lil' dreamcatcher

As you can see, the quality of these photos is much better than my old camera could ever take. These photos aren't edited but were reduced in size (so they could fit on the page!)

I hope you enjoyed reading this weeks post!

See you next time,

 Sophie xx.

MAKE : CRUMPLED PAPER POUCH

Heya!!

I know, I know I say this almost every time I post, but I've been gone a while...

1 month, in fact.

I'm quite disappointed about this, as I thought I was going really well with blogging. I have a few more posts planned, and will be getting a new camera (Sony RX-100) in 5-10 weeks, so be ready for better photos! It feels good to be back posting, and hopefully it will stay like that!

Anyway, onto the possst!

    you need: a brown paper bag / gift bag (if using gift bag skip steps i - v), a snaplock bag (if you are planning on putting plants in it), sticky tape, paint (optional,) and scissors.

instructions:

i. I first scrunched up the paper then flattened it out. This is so it's easier to roll up the edges later (and I think it looks better, too). Now cut off the bottom where it's sealed. If you want to paint it, now is the time to do so

ii. Now fold the bottom up halfway.

iii. Open the little pocket up and fold it in like shown in the picture

iv. Now, fold the bottom section up. repeat this on the other side.

v. Unfold, and then fold the top and bottom sections to the line in the middle. Secure it with sticky tape.

vi. Now stick your hand in and puff it up. Roll the sides tightly. keep rolling until it is the size you desire.

vii. If you wish to put plants in, line it with a plastic bag. this will prevent any water moistening up the paper. I used a little stripy aloe vera in a yoghurt tub  (✿◠‿◠)  you can also store washi tape, pens, beads or anything else in these!

I made this giant one with some brown wrapping paper ( around 40 x 60 cm ). I folded it in half then taped it together then proceeded with the rest of the instructions. You can use one like this for shoes, rubbish (huh, a rubbish bag made out of rubbish //farmer-like chuckling//), or larger plants. I'm planning on making a mini garden.

And that's it!

See you next time,

Sophie xx.

FUN FACT: I started using roman numerals instead of regular numbers so I remember for a test (i have no idea how roman numerals work, or why they were invented (probably to torture innocent children like me  v(ಥ ̯ ಥ)v )

Oops, forgot to credit... inspired by this post :)

E A S T E R T R E A T S

Hiya!!

I've been a great, commited blogger lately and haven't posted in a week. (was it a week? 2 weeks? Sorry about that, hehe) Anyways, the other day my mum asked me to bake something Easter themed for her to take to work. Naturally, being the only person in my house who actally finds the joy in baking (c'mon, who can honestly say they didn't like cooking as a kid), I came up with these. Enjoy!

________________________________________

WHAT YOU NEED

________________________________________

+ vanilla cake mix* | including all eggs, milk, etc needed

+ assorted food colours | pink, blue, yellow

+ mini chocolate eggs

+ sprinkles, chocolate flakes - anything to decorate!

*you can use pretty much any vanilla cake recipe you want

________________________________________

WHAT TO DO

________________________________________

a.  create cake mix according to directions on the box.

b.  separate mix into 3 equal portions.

c.  add a few drops of food colouring until you get the desired colour.

d.  mix well and scoop into mini cupcake liners. Place 1 chocolate egg on top of each. I used m&m eggs which had a coloured shell. I wouldn't really recommend these if you don't want the colours bleeding into the cake (the pink cake in the picture demonstrates exactly that), but I'm fine with that!

e.  bake at 180 C for 20 minutes or until you can poke a skewer in and it comes out with no mix on it.

f.  take out onto a cooling rack to cool for 10-20 minutes.

g.  while the cakes are cooling, create any icing mix you want. (here is a good one)

h.  once the cakes are cool, load the icing (now it sounds like a weapon - violence is not the answer, even if it has come down to who gets the last cake) into a piping bag with a star tip and build up a huge mound of icing (who doesn't like an excessive amount of sugar?)

i.  decorate!! Use any sprinkles, chocolate, lollies or even popping candy you want. The possibilities are endless!

I hope you try out these delicious cupcakes in time for Easter.

They are definitely a favourite at my house! (half are gone! So much for my mum hosting an Easter brunch at work...)

See you next time,

Sophie xx.