Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire used for filming "The Duchess"

Had a fabulous day out at this amazing country house in Derby, U.K.- It was built in 1759 for the Curzon family and features some magnificent interiors designed by Robert Adam which definitely have the wow factor. The house has beautiful landscaped grounds with a series of lakes and cascades. It was recently used to film "The Duchess" starring Keira Knightly and has an exhibition showing how the interiors were transformed and cared for during the filming... I am looking forward to seeing the film when it is released in the U.K. in September..

Bright summery Bag!

I have just finished making this bag for my sister to cheer her up as she has been ill for quite a long time- am pleased with the bright summery colours from the lovely fabrics that I got from Etsy... It took me a while to find a good pattern but eventually found one on this blog

http://vintagericrac.blogspot.com/2008/01/1-hour-bag-tutorial.html and it is very easy to make and a really good tutorial... good blog as well!

Best Lemon pudding ever!

This pudding is just divine and the recipe is in the BBC Good Food magazine which I subscribe to monthly.. I served it cold for a change with summer fruits - strawberries and blueberries -and it was gobbled down in minutes with everyone wanting seconds !!

The recipe is

50g butter

200g caster sugar

2 large lemons

3 large eggs

50g plain flour

300ml milk

butter an ovenproof dish and heat oven to 180c/160c fan . Weigh sugar and butter into a bowl .Finely grate lemons and then squeeze out the juice- you will need 100ml. Separate the eggs putting the egg whites in a dry clean bowl. Whizz the butter,sugar and lemon zest in a food processor until creamy, add the juice , whizz again and tip in yolks,flour and milk to form a smooth batter.

Whisk the egg whites with an electric whisk until firm but not too stiff and pour in the lemon batter and fold two together carefully so as not to knock the air out of the egg whites.

Pour the mix into buttered dish and set in a roasting tin adding a kettle of hot water to the roasting tin making a 'bain marie'. Bake for 35 minutes until the top is golden brown with a lovely lemony sauce beneath and ... Voila! Enjoy! Lovely dusted with icing sugar and served warm or cold with berries and ice cream - yum yum !!

beautiful birthday gifts...

It was my birthday today and I received a parcel from Australia from my lovely daughter who had made me this fabulous hand made bag

and matching purse - I am so in love with it- it is really beautifully made and the fabrics coordinate so well

this lovely little book was enclosed called "The Miggy Tree" by Karl Yeomans with wonderful illustrations by Anna Walker. The story is really heart warming and was dedicated to the author's mother - sadly he died in 2006 aged just 33 years. These are such precious gifts - thank you so much Becky.

I spent the day at a barbecue in my friends garden and had a really good time eating and drinking far too much and enjoying the perfect weather today, which ended in a huge thunderstorm ... then watched Andy Murray winning a tennis match at Wimbledon so I had a day to remember...

11 things to LOVE and HATE!!!!

1. I love pink blossom seen against a blue sky-

2.The smell of fresh bread first thing in the morning- courtesy of our breadmaking machine..

3.English tea shops and the coffee shops in Melbourne, Australia

4.Soppy films that make me cry

5.Brand new shoes ( what woman doesn't !)

6.Australian soft licquorice- it's addictive!

7.my dishwasher- best invention ever

8.the blackbird who sings his heart out at the top of our birch tree in the evening

9.receiving a handwritten letter delivered by the postman ( hardly ever happens now with emails)

10.cliff top walks with the sound of the sea crashing on the beach

11.finding a book in the public library that I was just going to buy on Amazon....

I could go on an on but these are the things that I HATE - it's good to have a grump!!

1.coat hangers- especially when they get tangled up in each other- drives me mad

2.people who don't clear up their own dog's mess- this is a real rant!!

3.sorting out the laundry and always finding an odd sock- seems to be some sort of law!!

4.waiting at the bus stop to find my bus is not running

5.Halfords, Maplins and any sort of "blokey" techy shops

6.public toilets - especially when there isn't any loo paper or soap!!

7.slugs, snails, daddy long legs, mozzies etc etc...

8.any sort of milky pudding like rice pudding-yuck!!

9.drivers who don't signal left or right

10.people talking on their mobiles at supermarket checkouts or at the restaurant table- so rude!

11. Buying something full price to find it in the sales the next week.

Phew- feel better now- I could go on an on but what are yours- go on - let me know...

Baby Badger...

I made this baby badger in his little racing suit as the official mascot for a brilliant website created by my nephew for all Formula 1 fans. The web address is www. f1badger.com and it is a very entertaining and light hearted site - "Formula 1 is not boring!". So for all the many motor racing fans out there ,it is definitely worth a visit as it is the best and most informative and most importantly the funniest formula 1 website in the world .... but I am biased being number 1 Auntie... check it out and see!!

little pony cake!

I made this cake today for a little 5 year old girl who is crazy about ponies! I thought it would be impossible to do at first - a pony shaped cake? but I think that this gives quite a good effect and hope that she will like it...