Wednesday 24 October 2012

Less is more

I was deliberating whether to colour this in or not.  At the end I opted for the plain and simple look. Then again, I may just make another one and colour it in to compare.

I used a little bit of beeswax on the frame to darken it slightly - seems to work quite well with this design.

Tuesday 23 October 2012

A little bit of OCD...perhaps

Another fact those around me would know is that I'm a bit of a perfectionist. I like things to be neat and orderly. Not in an obsessive kind of way (hem hm), but I do take great satisfaction in having and seeing things in order. Whether it is this pile of wood or my son's boxes of Lego (don't ask!), nothing irritates me more than to see something not quite right.

We had to get the wood quickly into the shed last night, just in case it rains. To my husband, it was a job done - end off. To me, while still piling, I was already thinking...I need to get in here tomorrow and rearrange them!  My brain doesn't register the fact that it was fine in the first place and the firewood is going to be used anyway.  I just see something that needs rectifying.  One good thing though - apart from having a neat pile of wood - I approach my designs the same way. Not that everything has to be symmetrical but there is a clean line, a neatness to them that is pleasing to the eye...I hope.

Tuesday 2 October 2012

Peanut butter and condensed milk

Taking a break

Those who know me well will tell you that I am a little bit addicted to condensed milk. Not condensed milk per se but condensed milk with peanut butter, either on toast or as a sandwich. After forty odd years of it, not every day of course, you would think I would be sick of it by now. Sure, I may go without it for years but somewhere down the line, on an unassuming day, I’ll buy a tin, a jar of peanut butter and I will literally eat it continuously until they are finished and will not touch it again, well, until another unassuming day.

I think this weird and wonderful combination will always remind me of my childhood. Growing up in Hong Kong, this was and still is a very popular treat. I can still picture it: sitting in the local cafe, the smell of peanut butter with condensed milk melting on a warm piece of thick toast...heavenly.

Over the years I have tried various combinations: jam and condensed milk, toasted cheese and condensed milk, even toasted cheese, jam and condensed milk! But for me, the ultimate and the perfect marriage, is with peanut butter. Tesco here I come!