If I have to think about it...so do you!!

OK..If I'm being forced to realise that Christmas is on the way, again...& too quickly for my liking... I thought you should all be made aware that, once more ....IT'S on the way!!
Don't get me wrong, when it actually gets to Christmmas eve, I LOVE Christmas, I just can't stand the way we have it forced upon us earlier & earlier every year...for goodness sake, time goes quickly enough as it is! Bah Humbug...LOL
So..here is my 1st mini, a little bundle of sugared snowflake cookies, acknowledging the rapid onset of the seasonal nightmare of trying to get organised for that 1 day...all the presents to buy, cakes & puds ("real" ones!!) to make, turkey etc ordered...& all that before the arrival of the family necessitates more food shopping, more cleaning, more washing & worst of all..LESS time in the mini sweatshop!


I love Christmas......really!! LOL

I think this has put me off chocolate!

I have spent 3 WHOLE nights & 2 days rolling thousands of little balls to make these truffles ( well it seemed like thousands, maybe just the high hundreds!) I had a request to recreate a chocolate parcel that I had made a few years ago & like the nut that I am I thought, "well if I have to make one, I may as well make a couple & then I've got one to take to Kensington on 21st!" Then, as always, I'd mixed too much of each colour clay & I thought "NO! I'm not going to waste that".....so there I was, rolling these damned balls until I was nearly blind!...It was enough to put me off chocolate for a while! Happily though, I'm now back on it(the "real" thing, that is!)..I don't really think I could survive too long without it. Well,maybe for a day.....half a day...perhaps!! LOL





So then I had enough of those blasted little balls to fill a couple of jars too!

2 posts in 2 days..what's wrong with me?

I rather think I'm like a bus.....you wait for hours for 1 & then 2 come along at the same time|! :-))
It's definitely Autumn here now...grey days with wind, rain & leaves blowing everywhere ....& as a result my thoughts have turned to the wonderful, hearty, warming dishes that only the British can produce(to cheer them up of course over the winter months! :-))..)
This is a wonderful stew that I remember from my childhood...here in the bleak North East of England we needed these wholesome stews to see us through the long winters!! LOL On this litte, aged board are the ingredients to make one of the nicest meals you could ever taste..no fuss...no "chefiness"..just good old fashioned food!!

Ingredients to make a "Jugged Hare"!



A version of this in the Kaye Browning Museum in Maysville, Kentucky & I have seen the odd skinned hare made in miniature since I first made them...sadly, I think the makers haven't actually seen a real life skinned hare & don't realise just how dark the meat is & how much fat is left on the carcass once the fur is taken off..which, of course, has to be performed while the hare is still warm!! I've done so many over the years & only stopped when I got a segment of tapeworm stuck underneath my finger nail! I've never skinned a rabbit or hare since...it put me RIGHT off!! LOL..If anyone wants a "sick bag" just yell!!!! LOL

Ooops! Half term has crept up on me!

Oh dear...half term has crept up on me! I've been so busy in the mini sweatshop fulfilling commissions & trying desperately to make stock for Kensington, that I hadn't realised just how quickly the time was going! My oldest, hubby & 3 kids will be descending this weekend so all mini making will stop for the next week & then I'm really going to go into the "pulling hair out" & panic mode as I realise that I have to get enough made to fill the table on 21st November...thank goodness it's only a 1 day show...how people manage so many shows each month is beyond me..I think I must be too much of a perfectionist for my own good! :-((
I had to share with you a miniature version of an old fashioned English suet pud that I made "real size" last night for the hubby & myself...a Sussex pond pud..if you can find a recipe it's simply fabulous! The lemon is surrounded with brown sugar & cooked in a rich suet..when cooked & cut into the delicious, lemony caramel sauce oozes out...YUM!!



Then, instead of concentrating on making pieces for Kensington, I really fancied trying my hand at basket making agaain..having done so, I had to then fill it with rustic breads!



Somebody please make me get "my nose to the grindstone" because once half term week is over I just know I'm going to be in real panic mode!

"Finito!"

I was set a challenge by a very talented "virtual" friend..who shall remain nameless! She knows who she is LOL...to recreate the food served at a mixed culture wedding! There were to be starters, main meals & desserts, one from each culture & 1 of each course had to be half eaten! After much umming & aahing over the not too clear photos I was provided with, at long last it's finished!!


Mushroom soup!


Goat's cheese tarts!


Cajun chicken!


Tikka Chicken!



Irish Lamb!


Bread & butter pudding!


Meringue nest!
It was certainly a challenge & I hope I've got it right for the customer...having just sent the photos to her, I have no idea or not whether it's what she wanted or not...just keep everything crossed that it is. otherwise you'll all hear me screaming & cursing in blogland!!

A new award!

OK, I received this award from MiniC http://minicreazioni.blogspot.com/
& as I'm so hopeless at working the blogger system, I hope I get it right!
Firstly, thank you Rosa! I just hope I can work out just how to get the award picture up there! Anyway, i'll try that one later! For now here are the rules!

1) Display the image of the prize and publish the rules.
2) Post the link of who won the prize.
3) Give 10 blogs dream to which award the prize.
4) Notice blogs listed.

OK...now to the hard part...the blogs...10 of them, that's a lot!!

1) To Paloma:- http://untallerdeminiaturas.blogspot.com/
2) To Jeannette:- http://gardenofminiatures.blogspot.com/
3) To Christel Jensen:- http://christeljensen.blogspot.com/
4) To Teresa:- http://tinyterminiatures.blogspot.com/
5) To Kiva:- http://kivasminiatures.blogspot.com/
6) To Rachel:- http://miniaturesbyrachel.blogspot.com/
7) To Donna:- http://hagerbears.blogspot.com/
8) To Linda:- http://une-petite-folie.blogspot.com/
9) To Kim:- http://kimsminiatures.blogspot.com/...sorry Kim, I know you've already had this one, but your work shouldn't be so fab!! :-))
10) To Ana:- http://tinydelights.blogspot.com/

PHEW! That took some doing...now I've just got to remember to add a note on all these blogs!...I think I need a glass (at least 1!!) of wine before I attempt that one!...Now, can I manage the award pic...now there's a challenge for me!
WHEY HEY!!!!...I DID it!!

Branching out into basket weaving!

As it's almost impossible to source decent basketware...apart that is, from Zara Ribeaud Thomson, whose baskets are breathtaking in their appearence & execution...a level of craftmanship in basket weaving that I can only ever dream of reaching..I decided to try & create my own version..humble though it might be in comparison..I was relatively pleased with the result!


I filled my humble 1st attempt at a basket with an Italian Dolcelatte, French Brie & the King of English cheese, A Stilton & added some fresh English apples, bread buns & a rustic bread! All in all, I'm quite satisfied with the result, although it would be SO much better in one of Zara's fabulous baskets!



If you get a chance, check out her fabulous work on www.zarathompsonribeaud.com