Crochet Giraffe

This little guy was my first adventure into the world of amigurumi - or crochet stuffed toys.
I thought I was biting off more than I could chew but luckily I could read the pattern and I think he turned out pretty well!

It was pretty fiddly making the tiny horns and it took a bit of effort to sew the pieces together. My favourite part was trying to get the stuffing down the skinny arms and legs!

I used Emmas free pattern over at I Love Buttons By Emma.

I had caught the ami bug and as soon as this guy was done I started on another. This time in a solid colour with white accents. I accidentally changed up the pattern a bit, making the neck longer and thinner and the head shorter. Pattern following is not my strong point, I tend to pick up and drop stitches like there is tomorrow but I wing it until it looks right. Which is why knitting is not for me.

They are already best of friends.

My next attempt is going to be a version of Sonic the Hedgehog. Winging this one too. Wish me luck!

Milk Tart (Melktert) Recipe - Gluten Free

Milk Tart (or Melktert) is a South African favourite.
I was introduced to this delicious cinnamon smothered custard tart by my Sister-in-law and her South African hubby. My SIL is gluten intolerant and she made a similar version but I thought I would give you the recipe I adapted.
I am warning you now that it is pretty addictive!

Gluten Free Milk Tart

Base:

Gluten Free biscuits come in varying packet weights so the amount of butter you will need will also vary.

- 1 packet of Gluten Free biscuits (150-250g) (Plain is best but I used Gingernuts and it was delicious!)
- Melted butter - for 150g biscuits use 90g butter
                         - for 250g biscuits use 130g butter

- Crush biscuits in a food processor and mix with melted butter.
- Press into a LINED tart tin or pie dish, pressing biscuits up the sides of the tin as well as on the base.
- Refrigerate while making the filling.

Filling:

4 ½ cups milk
2 ½ Tbsp cornflour
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
pinch of salt
2 ½ Tbsp gluten free flour
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 Tbsp butter

- Bring milk to the boil.
- Beat eggs well in a large bowl and add sugar, flour, cornflour and salt. Mix well.
- Pour the boiling milk into the egg mixture and stir well.
- Return milk mixture to the stove on a medium heat and stir constantly.
- Keep stirring until the mixture thickens to a custard consistency.
- Add vanilla and butter and mix in.
- Pour mixture into the biscuit base and smooth the top.
- Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon and allow to cool and set in the fridge.
- Enjoy!

The Time I Trashed My Wedding Dress

To be honest, right now I am in some sort of creative slump. But I know that it will pass and I am just enjoying spending my free nights snuggled up by the fire watching Breaking Bad with Dave and Killer.

So to give you a bit of awesomeness to get you through the rainy week I thought I would share with you some of my favourite photos from the time I did a Trash the Dress photoshoot.
My amazing friend Adele from Adele Krantz Photography took me out for the day and we found the most amazing spots to shoot in. Plus she even did my hair and makeup for me!

This was way back in April 2010 so most of these landmarks have either been destroyed or significantly changed since the earthquakes. We used the old Sale Yards on Deans Ave, Christchurch and Sumner Beach, Christchurch.

A Trash the Dress Photoshoot is basically another excuse to get some great pictures of you in your wedding dress. It can be done with or without your partner. There are no limits to how creative you want the photos to be - I got my dress wet, I have seen others use brightly coloured paints or gone up trees or been under a waterfall - basically anything you think would look epic that is not logistically possible on your wedding day! I also wanted some photos of me wearing my trusty Chuck Taylor's. 

Adele did a great job right! I'm not usually this photogenic! P.S - That water was FREEZING!
xx 

Please don't re-use these images without my permission
Credit to Adele Krantz
Not a sponsored post - just seriously love these photos!!

Roller Derby vs Crochet - Toe Guards

Check out my sweet derby skates!
Like pretty much everything I own, these are second hand. The leather has already been worn in! No blisters for me thank you very much!

I am slowly beginning to customise these to be my style but at the moment they are a bit mixy-matchy. The toe stops have been swapped out to something with a bit more surface area and I have put in some pink laces for now. They came with some sweet wheels but I need some new bearings and also I need to grow my wheel collection because of the variety of different surfaces we skate on.

But the biggest problem with these skates is the toe guard. Since derby invloves a lot of falling (intentional or not), skates will end up a bit scuffed. The leather toe guards do well at protecting the toes but not either side of the toes. The poor skates were looking a little worse for wear so I thought that I would try and make my own toe guards. Crocheted toe guards!

Now I know these won't last long but how cool are they! I can make them any colour too so I can match them to my outfit (yes, a huge part of derby is the outfit!)

I am giving them a test run tonight to see how they go :)

Diary of a Derby Girl: Contact

So it has now begun. The Freshies have begun contact. Before, the only time we fell was because it was our own fault. Now there could be a hit coming at any time – paranoid much?
The very first contact we did was with a wall. In a controlled manner this time. We stood with the wall beside us, got into derby stance and used our hips to hit the wall. “Hit it like you shut a car door when you have your hands full!”
I can do that! This contact thing may not be as scary as I thought! Well let me tell you a story.
After we moved on from using the wall as target practice we partnered up and started hitting each other with our hips. After we apologised profusely after every hit and missed-hit, the adrenaline kicked in. Somehow I got partnered with Punch – one of our awesome dimpled coaches. She was complimenting me on my hip checks and then she checked me back. The first time was fine, it hurt a little but I didn’t go flying. Then all of a sudden WHAM! I lost my breath and my balance and let out a huge OW! (I stayed on my feet though!) I look over at Punch and she had a cheeky smile on her face and she said, “Ok, now I know how hard I can hit you!”

 Say what! She was going easy on me the second time even! I have got a lot of work to do to be able to give and receive these hits. As well as be hit while concentrating on a million other things going on in a jam.
One of the things we get taught is not to apologise when we hit someone. It is part of the game, plus it ruins our tough-girl image! But when you send a teammate sprawling on the floor it is hard not to yell SORRY!! I am sure I will get used to it, as well as be the victim many, many times
Looking back on my last post, I didn’t quite pass my first round of skills testing – all the ‘hard’ stuff I was worried about I passed, it was the basics that failed me! My un-fitness is catching up on me and my challenge is to get low and stay low. Endurance is my downfall and after 20 or so laps my legs are burning and my back is complaining, so I am getting my core strength up so in a week or so when we re-test I will hopefully pass and be able to train with the Big Girls or ‘Old Meat’ as we affectionately call them.
In other derby news – ‘my’ derby name that I had so carefully chosen has popped up on the International Rollergirls Roster so it is back to the drawing board for me. My life has been consumed with coming up with a witty, punny derby name.

Summing up:
Hit hard. No apologising. Get lower. Engage core. Be tough.
xx

Going, Going, Gone

Over the last couple of days the building across the road from my work has been in the process of being demolished. Apparently it was only around 17% of current building code*
*I may have made that up. In any case, it was easier to knock it down than fix it up. The occupants moved out over a year ago so it has been sitting there all empty and tagged since then. It is not quite down yet but my goodness it is amazing how much more sunlight gets through now! Amazing.

The cordons around Christchurch CBD have all gone now (for pedestrians) and all there is to look at now are big empty spaces where you rack you brain to remember what used to be there pre-quake. Christchurch has become a giant gravel car park (where you STILL have to pay for parking - thanks Wilsons).

I am looking forward to this blank canvas becoming something new, edgy, and modern with still that small city charm. Because lets be honest, Christchurch's way of life is on the lazy side of NZs largest cities. Which is exactly what I love about it.

Presenting...Our New Home

Removing some bushes that blocked  our precious sun

It has been  a couple of weeks now since we moved in. As keen as we have been to get right into tidying the place up, the weather has has other ideas - Snow, flooding, sub-zero temperatures, howling winds. So we jumped at the prospect of a sunny Saturday to put up a (massive) kitset shed - but that is a post for another day.

I managed to take a few photos of the empty house when we moved in. I thought I would compare them to how we have the place looking now and I must say it feels like HOME. Bliss.

 Thia is part of our 'U-shaped open plan Kitchen/Living'. The kitchen is to the right and the exposed brick is the back of the fireplace which is in the lounge. 

 This is the back of the fireplace close up. The wooden cabinet came as a chattel and it makes for handy storage! The bricks in the ceiling fell down in the quake and have been removed and replaced with a  modern flue, so the brick is there for decoration and awesomeness.

 Our sunny lounge! Fireplace on the right. Once we get EQC through the place we will be changing the wall colour yay! It is growing on me slightly though. 

The Multi-Coloured Hallway! Bleugh!!!

Not quite sure what was going on here but once again, hanging out for EQC to paint this monstrosity. My vintage bike and suitcases slightly make things better.

The mantlepiece/sewing corner/unorganized chaos

Loving the mirrors and the old printing frame.

So there you have a wee sneak peek into our tiny new home. The outside is a story for another day.

xx