U-handblog

Fighting fit & a word about sewing with oilcloth

Thank you for your lovely get well wishes everyone :)  I feel tip-top again and I even went to the gym last night.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that I wasn't totally unfit and I even managed to do some boxing training.  Whilst I was warming up I saw a lady doing some boxing sparring with a trainer.  The trainer  was holding pads - for her to hit (so you can box without being hit back - which is a definite bonus).  It looked like brilliant fun, so when the trainer was free I asked to have a go. It was a gas! Really exhausting, but such exhilarating fun.  Well, that's it! I have finally found something that is an all round work out, but also great fun - who knew?   Earlier today I even bought myself these - woo!

Onto sewing things.  I am going to get a 'working with oilcloth' tutorial together (as promised).  I thought I would ask you if you had any preferences as to what I should make out of oilcloth for the tutorial:   

• Laptop sleeve   
  
• Ipod cover - though there are so many different shapes of these things these days
• Wallet
• Lunch Bag   
  
• Magazine Bag   
  
• errrrrrrr...

In case you didn't already know, sewing with oilcloth is made INFINITELY easier if you have the right sewing machine foot (ah! So that's why the oilcloth always flipping sticks!).  The machine foot needs to be non-stick (also known as Teflon coated foot).   These feet glide over sticky oilcloth, vinyl and plastic, and they look like this:

Pic credit: Sewing Machines Plus.

Powered by Qumana

Hey good lookin', whatcha got cookin'?

Are any of you making or are going to make a Amy Butler's Sophia Bag?  If so Jo has made a start on hers and she is recording the process.

I'm busy working on the Sewing World mag bag today.   I'll post the pics later.  Whilst I'm making the bag I'll be thinking about what to get in the supermarket today.  I love cooking from scratch and we rarely eat ready meals or takeaways unless I'm really tired (I do all of the cooking, he does all of the washing up), but the one thing I don't like about cooking is deciding what to make. 

I seem to have a fixed repertoire of meals that only changes very slowly.   I haven't counted all of the dishes that I know how to make, but at the moment it seems quite limited because lately I'm making the same dishes again and again.  I'm in a food rut!  It's not that I can't cook; Mum & Dad (who are both excellent cooks) taught their kids well, and I am trained chef (I never went into it as a career) I'm just not at all imaginative about cooking right now.  Of course it's not the end of the world; it would just be nice to make some foodie changes what with it being the New Year.

Here are most of my cookery books.  As you can see I am a big fan of Nigel Slater, I really rate his Kitchen Diaries and his 30 Minute Cook.  Donna Hay is good for keeping it simple, Gordon Ramsay is great for the reluctant male cook (isn't it Al?), Hot Sour Salty Sweet is full of authentic Asian recipes (and it wouldn't look out of place on a coffee table), I also have a file of recipes that I've collected from the internet and various magazines.

.

Some food sites that I like:

• Delia Online - great no-nonsense mainly British food.
• BBC Food - recipes from all of their food programs.
• Jamie Oliver - love him or hate him; his recipes do work well.
• All Recipes - this site is crammed with recipes that have submitted and rated by folks like us.
• Epicurious - well laid out food info and recipe site.
• Guardian Food - good for restaurant reviews.

Actually, looking at my collection of recipe books I can see that it could do with more variety.  There's not much European and no Indian, American, desert, vegetarian etc. books for example.

.

Do you folks have any recipe books or internet recipe sites recommendations to share with us?  It would be fabulous to hear which books and sites are your faves especially as we are from all over the world and it would help me out of my food rut :) 

I've made this list easily accessible in the Misc-List-Mania category (in the left hand side bar), so please keep adding to it if you have any suggestions.  Thanks!

Sew What! Skirts book review

So work-wise I am still reasonably on top of everything (well it is only 1 week into the year). I still need catch up on the emails a bit, order more supplies for the shop, and I have a looming deadline for the Sewing World Magazine bag, but otherwise most things are in order and under control, that is until this came though the letter box for me - DAMN!
.

This book is going to save my short ass.  We crafters have access to so much yummy fabric, but short folks do not have access to yummy skirts.  Ohhhhh if I start thinking about whipping up some skirts now I just might have some to wear for spring/summer.

Some of the skirts you can make with this book.

The book doesn't have patterns, instead it teaches how to make your own - no wait, come back!  The instructions are clearly written and they shouldn't freak a beginner out which is great because I'm not too hot at dressmaking.  The first part of the book teaches you how to measure yourself, how to transform those measurements into types of skirt, and it teaches you stuff like how to do hems, zips, and darts etc.

How to attach a waistband.



I think I'll try this one first...

Here are the instructions for the skirt above.  It looks reasonably achievable and only moderately swear-worthy...I'll let you know how I get on.

Have any of you bought this skirt book yet?   Which skirt/s did you make?

I'll announce the Amy Butler Pattern monthly sewing contest winners in my next post.

Easy Egg Fu Yung Recipe

I'm lucky to be busy, except I don't have any ironed clothes, there's a mountain of laundry to climb, the vacuuming needs doing, the cooker needs cleaning, the...blah de blah.  After I've been to the post office with the orders and taken the woofer out, there is re-ordering, emailing, and blogging etc.  still to do.  This sometimes leaves us with rather empty food cupboards.  But that's usually OK, sometimes the nicest meals are ones that you cobble together with whatever is lurking at the back of the fridge. 

Egg fu yung is such a dish.  To be strict Egg fu yung isn't actually Chinese; it's American, but it's still really easy, tasty, and pretty darn handy when you haven't got a lot of food in the house.  You can of course make this dish with most any leftovers you want, for instance you don't have to have bean sprouts or spring onions, but they are nice in the dish.  This one is for you Kathi.



Recipe for Egg Fu Yong (for 6 disciplined persons, or 3 greedy guts - guess which one I am)

You Will Need - if you want to know what my fave brands of Chinese ingredients are, look here.

• 6 eggs
• salt & pepper
• big handful fresh bean sprouts (optional)
• small handful finely spring onions (optional)
• 1.5 big handful cooked and diced meat e.g. roast chicken, shrimp, ham, bacon, etc. OR
• 1.5 big handful of diced veggies e.g. mushroom, pepper, sweetcorn,  courgette, cooked broccoli etc.
• oil for frying

and if you want to make a sauce to go with it (I don't usually make sauce) you will need:

• 1/2 pint chicken stock (best made with oriental stock, this brand is very good)
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• Soya sauce to taste
• 2 tspn Corn starch to thicken
• dash of oyster sauce (optional)
• dash of sesame oil (optional)

 

1.  Mix all of the ingredients except the eggs in a mixing bowl, add a bit of salt and pepper.  Save a little spring onion for garnish at the end.

2. Break eggs into a separate bowl and whisk together.  Add the whisked eggs to the other bowl of ingredients.

3. In a wok (a wok is best for this because it is bowl shaped) heat enough oil to cover the bottom of the wok.  Get the oil nice and hot, but not smoking!

4.  Roughly divide the mixture into 3 or 6 portions (depending on how greedy you are) and ladle the egg mixture onto the pan, one portion at a time.  Form a nice patty shape for each portion and fry until lightly brown on both sides.  Turn once only; you don't want to break the patties.

5.  If making sauce:  heat the chicken stock,salt & pepper and soya sauce until boiling.  Make a solution of a little water and cornstarch for thickening.  Whisk cornstarch into sauce a little at a time until sauce is thickened.  Add a dash of sesame oil, and oyster sauce at the very end, and mix well.

6.  Pour a little sauce over each egg patty and serve with some rice.   Yummy...I'll go to the flipping supermarket tomorrow!

Quick and easy origami gift box tutorial

I'm still on a high, and the air feels different in a good way.

As part of the U-Handbag 2nd birthday celebrations I thought I would create a tutorial and I would do a giveaway.  Here is the tutorial.  It's a very easy origami lidded gift box which you and/or the kids can whip up in less than 10 minutes.  This box would be perfect for packaging smaller Christmas presents like jewelery, or you can use these boxes as dividers within a larger box (which is great for keeping our crafting supplies under control).

I have a stash of origami paper to (just about) rival my fabric stash...

Nice to have, nice to look at; nicer to covet than to use...(bit like how I feel about my fabric stash).


Origami was my first craft hobby.  The first model I ever made was this very box (I must have been 10 yrs old), from then on I was hooked. Here is a star I made recently...

An example of modular origami.

For my tutorial for a pretty origami lily flower click here.

Here is the lidded box.  I made a padded flower to put on the lid.  The flower can use be used to lift the lid off the box, or you can make a ribbon bow, or maybe a fabric yo-yo with button center, or stick some dried flowers on, or not!

 

To make the flower I followed JuJu's excellent tutorial.


1. Start with a square of thick paper or (best) light card (mine is 25cm square, which makes a box that measures 9cm (W) x 4.5cm (H).  Fold the paper in half diagonally, both ways.  Ensure all of your creases are sharp by running finger nail along each crease for every step of this model.

Fold diagonally, ensure that the tips meet perfectly.  It's best to be anal about being precise when paper folding!

2. Open paper out and you will see that you have folded a cross.  Take one of the corners and fold the tip of the corner to the very center of the cross.   Take your your time to be as precise as possible.  Origami works best when your creases are sharp and your folds are precise anal.

Repeat with the other 3 corners, and open out paper.

3.  Take one of the corners and fold the tip of the corner to the opposite crease that you made in step 2.

Repeat with the other 3 corners and open out paper.

4.  Take one of the corners and fold the tip into the fold you have just made in  step 3. 

Repeat with the other 3 corners.  Right, that's boring bit over with.  All we have been doing up to now is making crease lines which will form our guidelines for following steps.

5.  Take your paper and using the crease lines as a guide fold in the corners to the center of the cross as shown in the photo below.

Now fold in the side edges (using our crease lines as a guide) to 90 degrees as shown in the photo.

6. Turn the model over and make a diagonal crease in the 1st square from the left (as explained in the following pics).

Model is now turned over.  Notice how there are 4 squares on the bottom edge of the model?  We are going to make a diagonal crease in the 1st square from the left by following the next photo...

Hold the 1st square (from the left) in the same way as I am in the pic, and press your thumb down to make the beginnings of a diagonal crease (running from the bottom left to top right corners). Ensure the corners of this square meet each other perfectly, make the crease nice and sharp, repeat this step on the opposite of the model, and what you'll get is this...

Making these diagonal creases allow for the sides of the box to be formed.  Repeat this step with the other 3 corners of the box in the way, and what you'll get is this...

See?  It's all taking shape nicely.

7.   Fold the flap down into the box to finish the one of the sides (as explained in the following pics)

Pinch one of the flaps as shown in the pic, and start folding the flap (on the ready made crease) down away from you..

.

..fold the flap down way from you and into the box...

...flap is completely folded into the box.  The triangular tip of the flap should now lie flat on the bottom of the box to form a cross.  Repeat with the other side of box and you're all done!

If you like you can put some pretty paper at the bottom of the box to hide the cross. 

To make a lid for the box you need to use paper that is 1.5 cm square larger than the paper you used for the bottom.

Pop some tissue paper into the box, add your Christmas/birthday/treat pressie to the box, present to lucky person, and make 'em smile!

.

For my tutorial for a pretty origami lily flower click here.

Kitchen Confidential - what (some) restaurants rather you didn't know.

I finished reading Kitchen Confidential yesterday, (but this is my fave about food book).  It was quite entertaining; it took me back to the not so good old days, which just makes me feel even happier to be where I am know.  Even though I don't cook for a living anymore I've always been fascinated by kitchen goings on and I love cooking for friends and family. In fact I'd sooner cook at home or at friend's houses because I know that eating out can be a veritable minefield...  Here's few reasons why (list compiled with the help of Mr Bourdain, and my own observations):

• It's pricey - most restaurants charge at least 3 times the cost of creating the meal.  For example in the UK, it's not unusual for a chicken costing approx £2.00 ($4) (to the restaurant) to be worth £24 - £48 on the menu!!  So after the chef has cut the chicken up into portions that's £6 for a plate of cut up chicken pieces in a wine and cream sauce, or £12/15 for a plate of chicken breast in Restaurant a la Pretentiousss.  Blimey!
• Is it Special? - Special of the Day is often made up of a surplus of ingredients that need using up before they go off.  Any past-their-best veggies, or meat that didn't get used up over the weekend; pop them in a pie, or a stew, or some other rich tasting sauce, or make a terrine, or mousse thing, or anything that disguises the fact that the ingredients aren't spankingly fresh, give it a fancy name, and get rid of it!  Of course Specials are sometimes made from lovely ingredients that the kitchen has been able to obtain at a good price, but do you know which Special you are going to get, the old, or the new? 
• It's all about timing - Typically the best time to eat out in a restaurant is on Tuesday or Thursday.   That's when ingredients are likely to be freshest. Because even though restaurants receive regular deliveries, the big stock- up is usually on a Tuesday (after all of the weekend's ingredients have been used up) and Thursdays (to gear up for the their busiest time; the weekend).  If you want to make a science of timing, eat in the restaurant mid to late evening because if you eat early in the evening you may be eating ingredients from the day before as the kitchen will use those ingredients before they use the new stuff. 
• No Meat Thanks - Now, I haven't cooked in many kitchens myself, but I do know that many chefs aren't as scrupulous as a vegetarian would like them to be about not mixing utensils which have touched meat with those that haven't, or using veggie stock when they should...
• Get up off of that floor!- If your lamb chop lands on the kitchen floor, I'm sorry but it will miraculously spring back onto your plate.  Kitchens are often cramped and very hectic spaces, and food will do somersaults.  When it's busy and your lamb chop meal is part of 3 other meals(which have all been painstakingly prepared to be  ready at the same time), from a table of four and your lamb hits the decks at the last minute, rather than start all over again (and delay the other 3 meals) it will more likely then not be giving a dusting off...I've seen it...eurghhh!
• Which Meat/fish & 2 veg? - It's not unknown for restaurants to serve pork and pass it off for veal (at a higher price), and pass off  fish fillet of whatever for fillet of whatever (at a higher price).
• Done well? - If you are partial to well done steak be on the look out.  You are more likely to be served a whangy tough boot of a steak that the chef will be glad to get rid of...  He/she can cook the heck out of it.  You can't serve a tough steak for rare to medium steaks because they won't wont' be tender to eat.

.

Nice piece of well-done Steak?


With all of that said though; sometimes there's nothing nicer than being treated to a tasty meal and not doing the washing up!  Do you like to eat out?

Photography and photo editing tutorial (this is how I do my own product shots).

I had a nice, quiet weekend, and uneventful weekend.  Sometimes that's the best kind of weekend.

The 'photography and photo editing tutorial' is on my craft business blog.  If you sell (or are going to sell) your crafty goodness online hopefully it should be pretty useful to you :)

Thanks again for all of your really helpful votes for the new banner.  I'll do the draw first thing tomorrow morning (to give my US readers a last chance to vote) and I'll announce the draw winner in the afternoon.

The bag for the new bag tutorial is more or less finished.  I'm just doing the writing up now...

Okeydoke!  Back to writing up my bag instructions...whilst I'm doing that will get a load of these yummy bags!

This bag is crazy lovely (and yep it is handmade)!   See this bag and more yummy ones like it here.

A big Thankyou to you guys!

Aw!  I just wanted to say a BEEEG "thank you!!" to you for being so supportive about my new blog.  Your kind words of encouragement are really touching, and they mean heaps to me (she grins!).  Y' know what?  It was like being shown around a new school by someone nice on your first day :)

You lot are a sweet bunch of folks!

Yesterday I said that I would introduce the other specialty bloggers who make up the rest of the  eMoms team of bloggers.  I'd say that there is something for everyone amongst this lot:

• Internet Business - co written by Wendy Piersall  (the founder of eMoms).  Here you will find info, and debate on squillions of issues surrounding being a parent at home, blogging, and running an online business.
• eBay selling for parents - written by Megan Jordan (who's made a good wodge from selling on eBay).  Here you will learn tips of the eBay trade.
• Freelance Parent - written by Lorna Doone Brewer & Tamara Berry (Both are Mums, and both are self employed).  Here you will find info and debate on issues to do with being a parent who works for themselves at home.
• Parent Product Reviews - written by Erika Jurney (who is fanatic about testing products!).  Here you will find tried and tested reviews on books, toys, and and other parent/child gear.  You'll also find giveaways too!
• Dad Balance - written by Derek Semmler (who is a self employed Dad who works from home).  Working at home isn't just for the girls!  Here Derek talks about the issues surrounding being a Dad who works from home.
• Seasonal Kids Activities - written by Sharon Hutton (who is a busy Mum to 3 girls, and she also works at home).  Here you'll find all sorts of great ideas to the little ones amused (and you calm!)
• Craft Boom - (written by yours truly!)

Coming next:  I'll announce the winner of the Bag Booty Draw...fingers crossed everybody!

Phew! A New Craft Business Blog by me, please check it out!

This should help explain why I haven't been posting on this blog as much as usual.  Newborn babies are always a bit more demanding than toddlers, but I think my little family has begun to find a bit of a routine, and I'll return to posting  more regularly.  Thanks for bearing with me!  Toddlers?  Newborn babies?  What is she gabbing on about?  Well, I have been commissioned by Wendy Piersall owner of the EXCELLENT eMoms at Home business blog to write a blog about running a Craft Business.

Wendy is passionate about women and men going onto business for themselves and on her terrificly popular blog she provides LOADS of information on how run this business from home.  Recently she commissioned 6 folks (of which I am one) to write their own business specialty in their own blogs, under the umbrella of the eMoms blog. 

I will now write most of my Bag Selling Tips and Advice post on my new blog, but each time I do I'll include a link to it on my post in this here blog.  I hope that works out, we'll find out soon enough.  I want this new blog to be inclusive, so very soon I will be inviting folks who already run their own craft business to show case their work, talk about their own business, share any business knowledge, and run interviews (it will be a great way to promote yourselves.  Please don't think I'm abandoning U-Handblog for pastures new.  This blog is my first love and it always will be :)

That's me!  I now also write Craft Boom a blog about marketing and running art & craft businesses.  Today's post is: How to market your business (for free).


So for anyone who is (or isn't yet, go on you can do it) running their own craft business skip over to my new blog and please comment on my new blog and let me know what you think.  I do have first date jitters and some first words of encouragement from you good folks would really help calm them down! :)

I'll introduce the 5 other folks who are writing about their own home business specialties in my next post. 

It was like climbing up a mountain without a sewing machine!

Awwww! You lot are really romantic (and funny!) Your significant others sound like they are lovely chaps (and chapettes (Hi Mark!), which must in part explain why we crafters are such warm and happy individuals.  I seriously hope your partners appreciate you as much you appreciate them, they better had!  Have you told us what you do, or don't like most about you partner yet?  You might win a whole wodge of bag making gear.  You have until the end of tomorrow.

I've just had a wonderful weekend.  Al & and I can't take long holidays because we are too busy, so we try to sneak off for (rare) long weekends if we can.  Last weekend we went climbing and abseiling in the Peak District.  The Peak District is a large (by UK standards) and stunningly beautiful national park with air so clean it tires you out, friendly people with a nice and funny sounding accent, and it's great for outdoor stuff like climbing!

View from our very nice B&B bedroom window.  It's an old mill which has been converted  into industrial units (nice place to work eh?)  The B&B was a lovely place to stay, friendly hosts, lovely room, and a breakfast too big for a wheelbarrow!

This face is what we had to climb on our first  day - YIKES!  We went with this outdoor pursuit company to do our climbing with.  They are a great bunch, and we would definitely go with them again (ask for Duncan ("Job's a good un"), to be your instructor; a knowledgeable good egg, who's forever laughing!)

Suited and....

...and booted!

"Does my bum look big on this rock?"

"Wait! I can hear something ripping!"

"Let go of the tree???  You must be bloody joking!"  Here we are just about to abseil off a ridiculously high quarry edge.  You can just make out the tops of some of the trees BELOW us.

"OK, why not let go?  I'm sick of paying the bills anywaaayyyyyyyy...."  To see more climbing shenanigans look here, and here.