Tuesday 31 July 2012

COLLECTIVE INSPIRATION


I finally signed for an apartment this weekend. So now I have somewhere to move into in September - Hurrah!

It is HUGE and a completely BLANK CANVAS.

I am really looking forward to having a place I can get creative and make my own and I have been trawling through various interior/DIY/recipe blogs on the internet for inspiration for my new place.
Here is a collection of what is currently getting my creative juices flowing...


INTERIOR INSPIRATION


where the wild things are forts


DIY IDEAS


IMG_7016-small.jpg


RECIPES

EVERYTHING over at Simply Breakfast.

Pepperoni Pizza Zucchini Bake



Saturday 28 July 2012

RECIPE | WALNUT CINNAMON BUTTER


So we thought we'd jump on the nut butter wagon just to see HOW good home made nut butter actually is.

IT'S PRETTY DAMN GOOD.


WALNUT CINNAMON BUTTER

Ingredients:

200-400g of Walnuts
1/2 a teaspoon of Cinnamon
Sugar / Syrup (or sweetener of your choice)


Instructions:

1.  Place the walnuts into a food processor and process them on full power. This will take you about 10-15 minutes in total depending on how MACHO your food processor is (our's decided to heat/oversmoke after about 8 minutes!).

2.  The nuts should start to become finely ground and bind together. Everything will look like it has gone wrong as the nuts start to clump into a dough-like consistency!

HAVE NO FEAR.

3.  This is where your desired piece of cutlery (we chose a knife) comes in handy and saves the day.
In between every 2-3 minutes of processing you should stop the processor and scrape the nutty/doughy mixture from the sides of the container and then continue to process again.


You will soon start to become bored of nothing happening and think...

WHAT THE HELL HAVE I DONE WRONG?

WAIT.

WAIT IT OUT.

4.  All of a sudden, out of nowhere, the nuts will start to ooze their natural oils and the mixture will form into a smooth paste. At this point add your cinnamon and preferred sweetener. Then continue to process until the nut butter reaches your desired consistency.


...et voila!

VERY simple and easy 100% natural home made nut butter.



Thursday 26 July 2012

TOP 10 | ESSENTIAL DEN-MAKING MATERIALS

So obviously I have not yet posted about making dens...or dens of any sort for that matter. I apologise.
This is mainly due to the fact that I don't have the most ideal space for making a den in my room at home and also because I am currently lacking important den-worthy materials. However, come mid-September I will have a new student pad up in Leeds and I hope to make it DENTASTIC.

Making dens is all about being creative.
The basic principle is using whatever materials you have available to you to make a little hide away space for your own comfort. You don't need lots of £££ or a shipment from Ikea. That defies the WHOLE point. So to get you started I have compiled a list of the TOP 10 ESSENTIALS needed to make the perfect den.


#1  YOUR IMAGINATION
Be creative.



#2  SPACE
A relatively large space where it doesn't matter if you take it as your own ground for a few hours, days, life-time...! If you want a quiet and relaxing den then it's good to choose a space where you no there will be minimal disturbances and distractions.
However, if you want a PARTY DEN(!) then it's good to place it in the centre of a room, student digs, abandoned squat or whatever takes your fancy.

picc


#3  POLE
Your centre. Your inner chi. Your den's "core".
Therefore, the sturdier the better. Use a tripod, old mop/broom stick, bamboo sticks from the garden, hat stand, light stand, shower/curtain rails, a javelin(!)...okay, maybe not the last option but as you can see the list goes on and on.

Tumblr_m2fodw18re1ql7kv1o1_500_large


#4  CANOPY / MOSQUITO NET
You can pick these up for real cheap off ebay (from China - mine was £1.99!). They also sell them in the kids sections in Ikea and Next.
Again, be imaginative, look in outdoors/camping stores for mosquito nets.



#5  DRAPING MATERIALS
These can be as basic as your spare set of bed sheets (although don't use this an excuse not to wash the ones currently on your bed) or something more extravagant like the hand-made throw some lady made out of 12 Alpaca's which you got on your gap year.
The MORE materials the BETTER.
Drape here...drape there...drape everywhere! This is where #6 comes in handy.



#6  PINS / PEGS / HOOKS / STRING
Drawing pins, safety pins, pegs, sticky hooks or the screw-in kind, string, rope or twine are also good but make sure you secure them properly to avoid any collapses.



#7  INTERIORS
So now you've built your den. It's probably going to be looking a little empty in there.
It's best to think of the essential things you need like desks and a seating/lounging area and then think of these in miniature form.
Good desk materials include: cardboard boxes, milk crates, coffee tables, foot rests, upturned laundry baskets/bins.
Good seating materials include: cushions, pouffe's, bean bags...hell, why not get a hammock if you've got enough room?

Pinned Image


#8  LIGHTING
Standard = Fairy lights. I do love them though. Be careful not leave them on for too long or too close to the fabric as you don't want to snooze off to end up with your local firemen coming to rescue you from your den at 3am...or maybe you do! Lava lamps, glow jars (how cool are these?!) and candles can also add ambience.

glowing jars


#9  HOME COMFORTS
For decor and atmosphere: music, incense, your favourite snuggling materials, bunting, flowers, etc.
 Things to keep you occupied in your den: a good book, writing, your laptop and a movie...or for me this year...the dissertation!

future home


...and last but not least...


#10  DEN SNACKS!
Popcorn, cakes and snacky things are best. Ice cream if you're feeling fancy.
Here's some inspiration for a selection of healthy den-snack recipes:




Wednesday 25 July 2012

RECIPE | GIN-GIN MULE

This drink will requench your thirsts for days like these when the British sun decides to show its face!
And there's also just the simple fact that drinking/eating pretty much anything (other than jam, obvs) from a jam jar is just INSTANT ADDED COOL.



To make a GIN-GIN MULE you will need:

3oz Gin (AKA double measure)
A drench of lime juice
Lots of crushed ice
As much ginger beer as you like...

* Also lovely with some fresh mint leaves but alas our mint plant has died. R.I.P.



Tuesday 24 July 2012

REVIEW | JEREMIAH WEED ROOT BREW


Jeremiah Weed are newcomers to the UK brew scene. Currently available are two different brews: Root Brew (brewed with a hint of ginger) and the Sour Mash Brew (brewed with a hint of bourbon).
I saw a review of their brews online and was desperate to get my hands on a bottle. Luckily enough, the local Waitrose was stocking the stuff and we snapped up a bottle of the Root Brew.


Served chilled over ice (how sophisticated) this was a DELICIOUS drink.
I am a BIG fan of the various ginger and root beers available at the moment but this one really tops them all.
It is much less acidic/sweet/artificial tasting than Crabbies Ginger Beer (my previous favourite), with a nice refreshing and natural tang.


 WARNING: This stuff is a little TOO drinkable. 




Friday 20 July 2012

RECIPE | HAZELNUT HOT CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM FLOATS

One of my favourite things to have in the evening before bed is a nice frothy mug of hot chocolate.
The other evening, myself and David had a crazy idea to make hot chocolate ice cream floats!


For the HAZELNUT HOT CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM FLOATS you will need:

Your favourite mug.
1 serving of your hot chocolate of choice (we used Options Belgian Hot Chocolate).
Milk (we used Alpro Hazelnut Milk).
Good quality vanilla ice cream.


Make the hot chocolate as per instructions and then froth it up in the microwave (be careful to make sure it doesn't froth too much and cause a chocolatey volcanic eruption!).


Add a good few glugs of milk and stir.
The hazelnut milk complemented the hot chocolate so well. 


Add a generous scoop or two of ice cream and DEVOUR your frothy indulgent concoction!