Sweet Mary

Over the last few years I have read bits and pieces on blogs about "no-knead bread". The idea of not having to knead the bread is strangely attractive to me. Unusual I know, as most people love the kneading bit and feel they can meditate while doing so. Today, I finally baked the loaf pictured above. I started it yesterday, checking occasionally to see what interesting things were happening. It only has 1/4 teaspoon of yeast so its a slow riser. Its mean't to cook for 30 minutes but it looked so brown at 25 minutes that I took it out early. Its delicious but probably should have had the slightly extra time as it is very moist. If you try this recipe you may need to play around with the timings a bit. The men in my life have declared it a winner though so I will be cooking it again, quite soon. Click here for the recipe but also read Jane Brocket's post on the same bread - find it in her Archives section, August 2010. Scroll down to August 21st and do read more of h...

The one and only peony that bloomed in our spring garden and what a beauty it is. I couldn't find a really pretty flowery bag for the summer and couldn't afford the ones online at Cath Kidston so I made my own using some of my precious CK stash. For some reason I decided to use a pattern - the instructions just about drove me mad. I kept reading each point and then re-reading and still thought it didn't make sense. Anyway, after a day of determination (and a lot of cursing) I finally finished the bag and I am delighted with it - roll on sunny days.

I love collecting things and I especially love collecting fabric and things made out of fabric. Some of these quilts were bought new and some were made by myself and one or two of them have been rescued from secondhand shops. The second shelf down holds two small quilts on top of two larger ones. These are the most precious ones in my collection as they are the two I made for my children when they were very small. They were my first attempts and not very well made but bring back so many good memories every time I handle them . Even though they have been washed many times I am sure I can still smell my babies on them. When not in use my quilts have often been hidden away but not any more. I am now the proud owner of this lovely piece of furniture bought from Redcurrent . Every time I pass I have a quick glance over my quilts and smile a bit to myself. My sisier-in-laws birthday today and as she had given me the idea for this style of peg bag I thought she should receive the first one....