Cranberry and white chocolate cookies

The weather has really taken a turn for the worse. Today there was a lot of wind, rain and even hail; this is what it looked like on our deck this afternoon.Brrrr, it was definitely a day for staying indoors, and for the first time this year we had the fire going… which warms the spirits almost as much as the house!It was also the perfect day for crochet. My new project is coming along nicely, especially with the enforced inside time, tucked up in front of the fire today.  I’m almost finished and should be sharing it with you in a day or two, in fact it would have been sooner had I not ran out of the yarn I was using for the border with only about 10cm to go. Gah!What? You want to see another photo? Oh, ok here it is on Friday (before the rain, and the border)…Fortunately I’ve also finished sewing in all those ends! Maybe if I’d saved some of those ends I would have been able to finish my border… never mind, we can talk more about that soon.

What I really wanted to share with you today was these totally yummy cranberry and white chocolate cookies. Yep, they taste as good as they sound. Chewy, oaty, chocolatey yumminess!

I cant take total credit for these delish cookies, though. Ive got a copy of Tana Ramsay’s book ‘I love to bake’ and couldn’t decide whether to make the oat and cranberry chewy cookies or the white chocolate, coconut and cranberry cookies – so I combined them!!! Here’s the recipe if you want to give them a try:

Cranberry and white chocolate cookie recipe.

• 225g (8oz) butter, softened
• 180g (6 1/4oz) light brown sugar
• 100g (3 1/2oz) sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 175g (6oz) plain flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1tsp cinnamon
• 250g (9oz) rolled oats
• 100g (3 1/2oz) cranberries
• 100g (3 1/2oz) good quality white chocolate (chopped into chunks)

1. Beat together butter and sugars until pale and fluffy.
2. Add eggs one at a time and beat well between each addition, then mix in the honey, vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Sift flour and baking powder together and stir in oats. Fold into butter mixture, lastly add the cranberries and chocolate, mixing just enough to combine.
4. Drop tablespoons of the mixture onto lined baking sheets and cook at 200c/ 390f/ 180 fan forced for about 10 – 12 minutes… until the edges are lightly browned and crispy, but the center is still soft.  Remove from oven and leave on oven tray for a couple of minutes to harden a little, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. This recipe makes about 3 dozen cookies, I like to bake about 2 dozen to eat and freeze the rest (in tablespoonfuls on a tray – then transfer to a bag or container when frozen) to bake later.

Enjoy! Love Janette xxx

Clothes peg people

This weekend we made peg dolls using wooden clothes pegs… the whole family got in on the act, and as a result we ended up with some very cool peg dolls!

This is a great craft for kids of all ages…. Carter did require help with cutting and gluing, but Maia (who is 6) was able to manage the creative process by herself, and with the exception of any hot gluing, was able to make some fabulous dolls.Such concentration! Less concentration, but loads of enthusiasm…From the photos, you will probably see that there is not much to these dolls. I got out a selection of wools, fabrics, paints, colored markers, glue and glitter and let them experiment. Hair was either wool  bunched up and glued in place, or painted on. Arms were made two ways, either with hemp twine, and knots for hands or pipe cleaners. I bet toothpicks would have worked too.  We used different glues depending on what was being glued – hot glue for trickier things, like arms and hair, and glue stick for everything else.

Here’s what we came up with:

Regular people pegs, first this stylish young couple (these ones were made by me):And then these lovebirds:

Mermaid pegs or should that be mer-pegs? (made by Maia):

Superhero pegs (Carter drew the faces and chose the outfits, Dad helped make them up): And finally these Princess Pegs (Maia again):

All that stopped us making more was running out of pegs! I loved making these dolls, I MAY have enjoyed making these more than is normal for a grown woman. Oh well… moving right along, Ill leave you with this joke…

Smile ♥ Janette xx

Many textured infinity scarf

How was your weekend?  Good? If you are a Mum I hope you were well spoiled ♥

I thought I’d start the week with a project I recently finished, and have been enjoying now that autumn is starting to chill into winter.

I wanted to make an infinity scarf with a bit of a twist… Lots of textures; fuzzy yarn mixed with metallics, and soft chunky rows to add interest to plain ol’ double crochet.And it has to be nice and long.  So it can be wrapped 2, 3 or 4 times around depending on how snuggled you want to be. As you can see it’s really a very simple make, all double crochet using a 7mm hook and a variety of double knit/worsted weight yarns for 7 rounds (8 including the starting chain- which was 200).

Just what’s needed for these cool autumn mornings. And here I am trying to get a photo of my scarf and the tree (at the top) in the background this morning in the fog… I barely succeed on both counts!The yarns are all man made acrylic/nylon mixes, but oh, it is so soft. And purple, don’t you just love purple? I do! Have a great week!

Tiny autumn painting and giveaway winner

Here’s a closer look at the tiny autumn watercolor and pencil painting I finished recently… its going to replace my summer one for a little while. I’m not 100% happy with it, so may have a re-do this weekend… but Maia has some other fun crafts lined up which she has been wanting to do for a while now, so we shall see how much I get done.

These paintings are only tiny, just big enough to sit on a miniature easel on my kitchen shelves… its tough to get enough detail into something so small. Nope, my office hasn’t had a tidy up yet!

Thank you for all your amazing comments recently, I really cant say enough about how special they are and how lucky to feel to have such a supportive community of like minded people around me.

So without further ado…. the winner of the washcloth and soap set is: Claudia.

I wish I could give something to every single one of you! Claudia, Ill be in touch, so keep an eye on your email! Janette xox

Inside gardening

As the weather cools and the focus moves inside our home, rather than that cleaning and tidying I should be getting around to, this week I have been re-potting some of my favorite house plants. At least then I can blog about it. There’s nothing like a little blog-based justification for my procrastination!!

These are just some of the plants adding life and beauty to our home, not to mention improving the air quality. From top to bottom they are: begonia, spider plant, string of pearls, succulents (which we call money plants but Im not sure if that is the real name or not), miniature cyclamens (a real joy of my winters, I love these plants), lipstick plant, rabbit foot fern, and african violet.

Do you have a collection of house plants?

This weekend

This weekend was quiet, the last before the new school term starts. I got a new ‘pet’ which put me in the mood for baking some delicious bread and some feijoa muffins for school lunches. Both kids and I indulged in some watercolor painting, a spot of gardening, and of course there was (maybe more than) a little crochet. Notice how untidy that office desk has become? I must tidy it up… tomorrow.

I hope wherever you are, your weekend was/ is (if you are on the other side of the world) a good one!

Spreading the love

Do you remember the lovely bookmark I received from Jane?  Well I wanted to send her something small in return for her kind gesture (and because I love sending mail almost as much as receiving it).So one evening I crocheted up a very simple cotton washcloth wash with her in mind. Because I wanted to wrap it up around a soap, I added a button and loop, and it became a simple, thoughtful, package all on its own.

I used this free pattern to make the washcloth, using two strands of 3ply cotton held together and a 4mm hook.

And because it was so easy, when it was done I made another one which I paired with another variety of my favourite eco soap.But this time I’m not sure who it’s going to…. maybe it’s you?

It’s only a small gesture, but it is in giving that we receive, so if you would like to win this crochet washcloth and soap set please leave a comment below. Ill draw the winner next Friday (May 10). Love ♥ Janette xx

A special package

I packed off a little green dragonfly love a few days ago, and once it’s arrived Ill show you exactly what it is. There may even be another one to give away

Easy crochet cowl…

Here’s a super easy light weight crochet cowl, great for either autumn or spring: You can find the free crochet pattern over at Maybe Matilda. I made mine with an 8mm hook and a yarn (if you can call it that… its like a long strip of t-shirt) called Gypsy by Moda Vera, then embellished with three vintage buttons… it took all of 20 minutes from start to finish. This would be a perfect beginner crochet project.Simple yet stylish… I love how it turned out! Have a happy Monday xx

Taupo Holiday

:It’s the first week of the school holidays here and we’ve just spent the last week staying in Taupo… here are some holiday snaps:

:The ever impressive Huka Falls:: Paul taking a swim in the lake (there was a very good reason the only other swimmer in sight was a swan – it was a tad chilly for swimming)…::Wairakei Thermal park:

:Lots of steam::We were lucky with the weather, but it was still wet underfoot::But the children enjoyed themselves, tracking dragons through the steam::Random (but beautiful) lichen::Feeding some feathered friends::I loved this inquisitive peahen: :There were lots of peacocks (and hens) tame enough to feed out of your hand::This girl really loved a back scratch::We checked out all the parks in town::Enjoyed many coffees at the best cafe:

:And even managed a spot of crafting at the local museum – the children’s artwork on the wall was awesome::Train ride anyone?::We visited a prawn park, and learned all about freshwater prawns, I even hand fed some babies::Before we undertook a spot of fishing::And caught a few prawns for dinner::A very tall redwood, surrounded by ponga ferns::Not a real dinosaur ::Very real rainbow trout in a lovely clear spring::Happy holiday kids:It’s lovely to have had a holiday, but oh so good to be home! How’s your week been? Janette xxx