hello, twenty four

Well then, it looks like I'm no longer twenty three.  It's been a good year, which I decided to see out by rolling around in some Bristol snow, being swarmed by police as a by-stander in the midst of a student protest, purchasing a couple of snuggly jumper skirts, perusing the nicest of little galleries, being denied chips at a cafe (but making up for it with a warm veggie sausage roll) and eating my very first tarte tatan at the devine Demuths. But how did I get on with my 'twenty three things to do before I turn twenty four' list?  Ahem...

1. Build a website

2. Eat a Knickerbockerglory

3. Post regular blog entries

4. Fill two polaroid films

5. Go to Ryantown

Well, okay, not quite (I blame the weekend job), but I did see some Rob Ryan originals in London!

6. Launch a greeting card range

7. Re-pot my sad little apple tree

8. Decoupage my sewing box

9. Learn to crochet, make something

10. Get a First for something at uni

11. Watch a meteor shower (it's been so long)

12. Make one of these

13. Go to the Little at least once a month

I certainly had a good go anyway!!

14. Add a patch to Issy's quilt

15. Make fifteen recipes from my recipe stash

16. Order some fabric from Spoonflower

17. Say 'yes' more

Subjective, but I think so.
18. Learn to do silkscreen printing

19. Organise a photo scavenger hunt

20. Get work experience in a studio

21. Be an explorer of the world

22. Feel hot sand between my toes (please?)

Ha!  No chance.

23.  Discover five new authors

Six, actually!!

Eleven out of twenty three.  Pathetic.  I apologise, I shall set my self fewer goals this year and try much, much harder!!

steady as she goes

I am slowly, SLOWLY plodding my way through my monumental to-do list.  I have finally got around to building a basic website to showcase my work, which you can find at www.mydeerfriend.co.uk.  It's a starting point, but a website nonetheless, where I have recently posted photographs of my graphic novel project, so do have a look and let me know what you think!

I have also launched a set of greeting cards, in as much as I have designed a selection of notecards with a special purpose and as an Etsy fanatic, I plan to make them available to buy online at some point, along with my birdie tote bag.  So watch this space!

As for my book challenge, I haven't quite earned my tick yet.  I'm on author number four.  'If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things'.  A delightful little read, courtesy of my dear friend Vanessa, following a complex tangle of lives, where the people within the novel are identified by their facial hair or personal quirks, rather than referred to by name.  It's an unusual one, I'll let you know how I get on with it!

yes please

This one goes out to Helen, who loves to bake and Ella, who like me, loves anything with a hint of ginger.  More of a winter warmer, I suppose, but so easy to make that you don't really have an excuse!

To make one batch of delightfully spicy* ginger cookies, you will need:

5oz Self Raising Flour

2oz Butter

2 Tsp Ground Ginger

1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon

2 Tbsp Caster Sugar

2 Tbsp Golden Syrup

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190°C / 375°F / Gas Mark 5

2. Grease and line two baking trays with greaseproof paper

3. Sift together all of the dry ingredients

4. Heat the butter and syrup together in a pan until melted

5. Combine the wet and dry mixtures until a soft dough forms

(Add more flour if sticky)

6. Form small balls of dough with your hands and place them on the baking trays, allowing space for growth (they get big)

7. Flatten them slightly with the base of a spoon and add a tiny sprinkle of caster sugar

8. Bake in the oven for twenty minutes, or until golden

9. Allow to cool and enjoy!

Super tasty fresh from the oven.  They probably make a fine accompaniment to a cup of tea.

* Word of warning, I would be less generous with the ginger.  Mine were H-O-T.

one down...

Now, I'm not much of a reader (don't get me wrong, I'd like to be) but I've spent the last week and a bit buried in books with a spluttery cough and achey bones, which is quite handy as I've vowed to discover five new authors as part of my 2010 list.  And this book (can I claim this?) might just be the best book I have ever read.

I won't go into a huge amount of detail, because it would be boring, and Jonathan Safran Foer can do it much better, but Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close follows the thoughts of eccentric characters and beautiful strangers on a quest led by a nine year old boy, Oskar, who searches relentlessly for a lock he can prize open with a mysterious key left behind by his late father.  The book is interspersed with photographs Oskar takes and the text often takes a direction of its own.  I could hardly bare to let it go (but Bath Library got angry and sent me a letter).  Read it.

But the cough remains, so I'm onto this one after rave reviews from my illustrative friends, and Nick Hornby, no less.  It is a romantic fiction, which is new for me, and typically addictive.  I'm sure I will be recommending this one too.  Roll on new author number three...

twenty three things...

I admit, I totally pinched this from Andrea (sorry), I just thought this was such a great idea.  I'm doing my utmost best to trap my motivation while it's there.  You just try and escape.  This level of determination calls for a Zorro mask, Amelie style.

1. Build a website

2. Eat a Knickerbockerglory

3. Post regular blog entries

4. Fill two polaroid films

5. Go to Ryantown

6. Launch a greeting card range

7. Re-pot my sad little apple tree

8. Decoupage my sewing box

9. Learn to crochet, make something

10. Get a First for something at uni

11. Watch a meteor shower (it's been so long)

12. Make one of these

13. Go to the Little at least once a month

14. Add a patch to Issy's quilt

15. Make fifteen recipes from my recipe stash

16. Order some fabric from Spoonflower

17. Say 'yes' more

18. Learn to do silkscreen printing

19. Organise a photo scavenger hunt

20. Get work experience in a studio

21. Be an explorer of the world

22. Feel hot sand between my toes (please?)

23.  Discover five new authors

I'll cross these off as I go!

brekkie to go

I've started compiling a big chunky list of things I want to do in 2010 (inspired by the great hulaseventy), which I intend to publish at some point.  My mum and I delight in collecting free recipe mags from supermarkets and tearing them out and sticking them in a book.  This is usually about as far as my culinary pursuits go.  However, I have endeavored, as part of my rapidly evolving list, to try at least fifteen recipes from my stash over the next three hundred and thirty two days of the year.  I have Asda to thank for this one.  Very yummy indeed, and quite handy.

Ingredients

175g butter

3tbsp golden syrup

100g soft brown sugar

3tbsp lemon juice

250g rolled oats

25g flaked almonds

2tbsp sesame seeds

50g raisins

and a sprinkling of cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas Mark 3.  Grease and line at deep cake tin (or whatever you can find) with baking paper.  Put the butter, golden syrup, sugar and lemon juice in a pan and stir over a low heat until melted.  Mix the oats, flaked almonds, sesame seeds, raisins and cinnamon in a bowl.  Pour the melted mixture into the bowl and combine until covered.  Press into the cake tin with a fork until even and bake in the oven for about twenty five minutes.  Remove and allow to cool (I didn't realise that the flapjack mix doesn't firm until it has cooled and incidentally kept shoving it back in the oven.  Trust physics).  Cut into bars or squares and enjoy!