masterclassin'

today, i toddled along to the voices of 2013 masterclass at smart artz gallery in south melbourne.
i was a little scared, i'd read over the list of people attending, and the number of people i actually knew was very small! turned out to be a good thing though... i put lots of faces to blog names :D

i managed to take a bit from the masterclass too! there was lots of talk about knowing your brand, and your voice, both of which i think i need to work a little on...
not that i want this space to be all brand-y or anything, i just think it would be cool to be clear with a vision and direction :D

i also learnt a bit about seo (search engine optimisation fyi) and it's something i'll have to have a bit more of a think about (obviously, judging by this posts title...)



despite it being an early morning, it was a good one and it was an event i was happy i went along to!

what have you been up to today? did you have a busy morning?

in the kitchen.

a few months ago, i was absolutely craving a certain breakfast food, from a certain fast food restaurant, that only serves breakfast until 10:30.
unfortunately, this craving came at 10:45...
slight problem.

luckily, there were a few eggs in the fridge, english muffins in the bread basket AND a bunch of sausages in the freezer!

i thought i'd share how to put together some sausage patties today, not that it's a particularly difficult process, but sometimes you just need a spark of inspiration ;)

the best place to start is with some delicious looking sausages. these ones are traditional pork sausages and are nice and fat and scrumptious looking!



then, you want to squeeze the meat out of the cases.
you could cut the skins to get the meat out, but i just squeeze it out either side. then i feed the skins to the cat... he normally annoys the living daylights out of me while i'm making these, he LOVES sausage meat.



i grab out some egg rings and lay them out.
then i grab about half a sausage worth of meat and squish it into the ring to get a nice round shape.
you could put a little less meat in to get a thinner patty, or a bit more to get a big, fat patty.



a batch of 5 sausages will generally get you 10-12 patties. of those, i'll generally cook a few up straight away, and freeze the rest! well unless the sausages have come out of the freezer already, then it's probably a good idea to cook up the whole batch!
the leftovers are great the next day, or you can pop them in the bottom of a muffin tray, and top the holes up with an omelette mixture and bake them in the oven. instant breakfast bites :D

what is your favourite breakfast food? have you cooked up anything new lately?

my creative space.

today, and all week to be honest, i've been working on my granny stripe.
i remembered that i mayyyy have put finishing the granny stripe on my 24 before 25 list and, well, 25 is coming along quite quickly!



i had a little measure the other night, and realised that this blankie is 180 cm wide! i thought it was heaps smaller than my ripple but it's only about 20 cm smaller! no wonder it's taking a while!
when i measured the other night, it measured 94cm long, so i guess i'm about halfway through!

i've set myself a goal of 4 rows a day, and i'm a little behind at this stage. definitely need to get my crochet on tonight!

i've also been thinking about what to cast onto my needles next... i need to work it out so i have something to knit on saturday, while i'm travelling to and from the voices of 2013 masterclass!

pop over to village voices to join in the my creative space fun

a baby finish.

over the last couple of weeks, i've been knitting away on a baby kina.
it's been a nice easy knit, nothing too tricky at all. the perfect project for knitting on the go. on the bus, in the car, on the train.
perfect!
raveled too.



i've knitted it up, not with a particular babe in mind, just for fun really!

and it's definitely NOT for any baby appearing around here, much to bb's mum and work colleagues disappointment!



this guy is quite fond of it until there's a baby around that needs it.
and by quite fond of it, i mean he's giving me a look that says he might eat my face while i'm sleeping.
not such a fan...

what do you think? are you a fan? what have you been knitting lately?

meal planning monday.

another week gone and another week ahead. better get meal planning!



tonight, we're having the above, butter chicken blipping away on the stove as we speak. it's making my belly rumble!

tomorrow night, another quick and easy meal, meatballs! whacked on some spaghetti, with a salad on the side. they'll be perfect!

wednesday night, we'll be heading out to celebrate bb's mum coming home from an overseas jaunt. delicious pub food, come at me.

thursday night, there are some pork chops in the fridge that most definitely need to be grilled up with some apple slices, onion gravy and some mashed taters. perfect comfort food!

friday night, late night at work, cashew chicken in the slow cooker at bb's request.

saturday, i'm heading into the city for the day to go to the voices of 2013 masterclass. i've then got plans to head to a trivia night that night so plenty happening. definitely hoping i can find something delicious to eat for dinner with some fabulous people.

sunday night will be perfect for a roast. i'm hoping it's already cooking when i get home from work. a girl can dream no?

pop over and visit pink patent mary janes for some more meal planning inspiration.

what are your food plans for the week? are you heading along to the masterclass too?

hottie'n it up.

the wonderful curlypops has been busy organising a group entry to the hottie challenge and exhibition being held at open drawer to raise money for the margaret pratt foundation.
when the event was held two years ago, i was terribly upset with myself for not getting my butt into gear and submitting an entry. when i heard it was being held again, i jumped at the chance to participate!
then however, i had no idea how to make my hottie cover... should i sew something? or crochet? or knit? or try something completely new and different?

I came up with an idea though, to knit it, in the same style as i make my beanies. that way it would be wooly and cuddly and cosy and everything a hot water bottle cover should be!



not only do i love the way it turned out, i used up 4 balls of wool from my stash! huzzah!
stash busting AND knitting something cool for a good cause. excellent!

the exhibition starts on the first weekend in july at open drawer if you're in melbourne town.

have you made an entry into the hottie challenge? what medium did or would you use?

green love.

despite the cooler weather and shorter daylight hours, i've been trying to get out and about in the garden a little bit...

a couple of months ago, i picked up the little veggie patch co. books and they've been keeping me inspired :)

i've planted out some garlic into some pots, one out in the front yard and one in the backyard.



there are also some onions, planted in a garden bed out the front. i'm hoping they break up the soil a bit out there, it's rock hard!



i can't wait until they're both ready to harvest as they're something we use almost everyday in the kitchen! it'll feel great to be using stuff from the garden :)

there's also a pot full of coriander and one full of rocket, sitting next to our front steps.



i'm hoping they catch enough afternoon sun to grow in abundance! rocket salads to go with rich slow-cooked casseroles and coriander to freshen up creamy curries. again, i can't wait!!!

also, in the weekend just gone I spent a little time outside, planting out some beetroot, carrot and pak choi seeds. oh, and I pulled some weeds in the communal garden bed along the fence, waging war against a GIANT thorny weed thing. it looked prehistoric!
it has left a fairly large hole, and now i'm wondering what to plant in it's place... decisions, decisions.

have you been up to anything in the chilly outdoors recently? or is it warm where you are?

meal planning monday.

oops, kinda fell off the blogging bandwagon last week huh? no meal planning post, no sharing my current knitting project, no sharing much of anything at all!
oh well, onwards and upwards!
i'm back now and ready to share my meal plan for the week (i did write this post earlier, but my newly acquired ipad ate the post! note to self: always hit the save button!)



tonight, after a quick trip to my brothers (he gifted me said ipad, what a legend!) i whipped up a chicken pad thai. i'd intended to cook it last week but came home with all the ingredients, minus the chicken! oops!

tomorrow, i'll cook up a big post of bolognaise! i've got the day off from work to get some study done, so in between reading up on and then writing assignments, i'll keep tabs on a simmering pot of bolognaise on the stove. perfect!

wednesday night is craft night so i'll grab something at the cafe we meet at. last fortnight i had an amazing pizza. prosciutto, fresh basil and bocconcini. y. u. m. hopefully there's something as equally delicious on the menu.

thursday night, i think i'll rustle up all the fixings for chicken parmas. served with fat chips and a bit of salad, they should hit the spot.

friday night is my late night at work, so a-slow cooking i will be. tex mex beef i think. i'll have to make sure i get lots of lettuce and cheese and soft tacos to make sure there's some for me when i get home!

saturday, i'm working. so i think we'll head out for dinner. there's a new woodfired pizza place around the corner that i want to try! will have to remember to book a table though, we popped in last saturday at 6pm and it was already packed!

sunday, sunday, sunday. sounds like the perfect day for a roast! there's some lamb in the freezer that will do just the trick.

what are your meal plans for the week? pop over and visit pink patent mary janes for more meal planning inspiration!

my creative space, the finishing edition.

i seem to have a whole load of finishes to show today... so without further ado,
a terzetto beanie i started AND finished over the weekend



this was made up, on request. and i even had the wool bought me to make it! i thought i'd better get it done quick smart!

now this one, i knit up for a special little bump



it's knit in some bamboo i picked up from bendigo woollen mills a couple of weeks ago and i couldn't get over how nice it was to knit with! similar to a cotton but without the fluff! now i need to think up something to knit with the leftovers...

i've knocked over this month's woodland sampler square too!



and i'm finding it a little terrifying that it's halfway done

i managed to finish an assignment too, oh and i made a start on a baby kina while i was away too!



it started out being quite a quick little knit and then there were a LOT of increases and everything slowed down substantially...
oh well, it's quite ideal for knitting while watching tv, although i seem to keep dropping stitches! something i very rarely do but have managed to do 3 times already on this knit!
luckily i always have a crochet hook at hand to pick them back up ;)

pop over and see what kootoyoo is sharing in her creative space today and join in the fun!

some time away.

i spent the weekend just gone with some family up in the dandenongs and it was nothing short of fabulous!
we had a wonderful relaxing time, long walks, a bit of shopping, a LOT of knitting and a whole LOT of delicious food!
we actually ate most of our meals at the place where we stayed... everyone bringing along something to share for a meal.



everything was so verdant and lush and there was a magnificent view from every window!
we loved it so much, i think we might be going back there next year!

meal planning tuesday.

i didn't quite have myself organised enough yesterday, after getting home from my weekend away, to get a meal planning MONDAY post written, meal planning tuesday will have to do!



today, i'm at home all day but car-less, and i honestly don't much feel like traipsing about in the cold to purchase groceries, so tonight we'll be eating whatever is left around the house! there's some roast chicken in the fridge, as well as some pita bread, chicken wraps it is!

tomorrow night is ncb night, so i'll grab some dinner there!

thursday night, bb has put in a request for meatballs, so meatballs he will get! the meatballs i make are ridiculously easy, i just find the best quality sausages i can, and squeeze them out of their cases into meatball shapes! into a pan with a can of tomatoes, some fresh herbs and a slug of wine and served with pasta, delish!!

friday night, bb has a work function on and i've been invited along! i believe there'll be food there, AND we're both playing in a darts tournament... that should prove interesting!

saturday night, i think i'd like to cook up a new recipe. i saw a recipe for a fennel and chorizo casarecce over the weekend that will be perfect!

on sunday night, i'm hoping i can convince bb to cook us up a roast, maybe pork? his roasts are always delicious and i have the feeling that after working all weekend, i won't be in the mood for cooking!

pop over to pink patent mary janes for more meal planning inspiration.

what are you cooking this week? trying anything new?

june.

gah! where did may go exactly?
despite it flying, i guess i did get a bit done...
my granny stripe blankie grew-some, i meal-planned, i made some pj pants and made a start on re-organising my craft supplies. i sent off my beanies, baked lotsa bread and finally planted garlic. the possums however, are still eating everything in sight (well actually they're not anymore, because it's all gone!) and i got ZERO assignments done!

all the more to do this month huh?



luckily, i made a good start on a couple of those things on my weekend away! huzzah!

what are you up to this month?