These cute little dolly head brooches are an old 
design that I re discovered. They have merino 
tops for hair which comes in a huge variety of 
colours and is really fun to work with. My favorite
is the one with the blue hair <3

I may venture out one day and make full dollies!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/113844480/dolly-head-brooches

I made these for my Uncle and Auntie who got married 
recently, they had ivory and maroon as their wedding 
colours so I used them in the design. They can be customized 
to any wedding theme. This is the new bear head design, 
I think it works well and is much easier and faster to sew!

If you really wanted to go cutsie they can be used as button holes :)


https://www.etsy.com/listing/114526810/bride-and-groom-bear-brooches

These little handmade foxy brooches are 
perfect for presents or just for yourself. 
Thanks to my generous felt supplier The Fibreworks 
I can make them in all the colours of the 
rainbow from bright and sunny to dark and chic. 
Foxy!!









https://www.etsy.com/listing/113843986/foxy-brooch

Battenburg or "window cake" as it is affectionately known has always been a favorite of mine, mostly because of the lovely marzipan icing which I must admit I would happily eat all day every day.
This was my first attempt and I have to say that apart from covering myself, the kitchen and pretty much every implement in my utensil tin in jam and pink crumbs, it was pretty easy!

Start with a basic cake recipe (I use a wheat free one), split it in 2 and add a drop of red food colouring to one half. Bake separately in flat tins and then leave to cool completely.
Cut the cake slabs into strips then on a piece of baking paper start layering them up using apricot jam (or your superb home made plum jam!) as cement. Once you have your chessboard tower wrap it in the baking paper and leave it aside to weld together. I used the kitchen wall, a knife block and the box of icing sugar to create a vice like structure to make sure it kept its shape which was perhaps slight overkill but it worked a treat.

Rolling out the marzipan is just the same as rolling out pastry but use icing sugar instead of flour to stop it sticking to the side or your rolling pin. Roll it out to the desired thickness and size and then spread more jammyness on top. Carefully place your unwrapped cake onto the marzipan and cut the ends to size. Wrap the marzipan round and turn the whole thing over so the seam is at the bottom. Tightly wrap it up in foil and leave for an hour or so to let it all stick together.

Unwrap carefully and gently cut with a sharp knife (I used a bread knife and a gentle sawing action) to get that perfectly patterned slice.
Yum!

Making jam is so much easier than I thought it would be!

You will need:
1kg of yellow plums. You can use your favorite fruit 
(eg. strawberries, blackcurrants, blackberries etc) 
1kg jam sugar
The juice of 1/2 a lemon

Method:
Take the skin off and the stone out of the fruit, put in a heavy bottomed saucepan. Soften the fruit over a medium heat then add the sugar and lemon juice. Bring to the boil and keep stirring, put a teaspoon into the mixture and pull it out again, set it aside to cool, push the mixture up the spoon and if it wrinkles then the jam is done. Leave it to cool and then put into clean jars.

This is defiantly a favorite in our house, be it for a late night snack or for a breakfast treat with a hot cup of coffee. 
This is a wheat free version but wheat free flour and xanthan gum can be substituted for regular plain flour.

You will need:
115g unsalted butter at room temperature
175g wheat free plain flour (I use Doves Farm organic plain flour)
1tsp Xanthan Gum 
55g caster sugar
pinch of salt
1 tin of Carnation Caramel
150g plain or milk chocolate
a lined baking tray
pre heated oven to 160 degrees C
Method:
Put the butter, flour, xanthan gum, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl, stir it all together with a wooden spoon untill it reaches the same stage (this method only works with really soft butter!). After a short while it should come together so you can mold it into a soft dough. Either squash it into the bottom of the baking tray or roll it out into a neat square to fit into the base using extra flour for dusting if needed. Prick it with a fork a few times and put it in the middle of the hot oven for 20-25 mins or until just coloured at the edges.


After the shortbread is cooked take it out of the oven and carefully take it out of the tray and leave it to completely cool on a wire rack.
When it is cooled spread the Carnation Caramel straight from the tin on the top of the shortbread (don't mix the Caramel as I did as it becomes too runny!).
melt the chocolate in a heat proof bowl over a saucepan of boiling water (make sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl other wise the chocolate will over heat and go lumpy). Once completely melted pour the chocolate over the caramel layer and leave to set in the fridge.


Cut into squares or random shards with a hot knife and enjoy!

The first time I made these I used Fluff, a marshmallow spread, and it was incredibly easy. The second time I used 2 bags of marshmallows....I ended up covered in pale pink goo! So as a result I would recommend using Fluff for ease of use, however if you prefer a chewy texture then I would go for proper marshmallows. Either way they are a tasty treat and perfect for any party.

You will need:
1 x jar of Fluff or 2 x 200g bags of  marshmallows.
1 x knob of unsalted butter.
Rice Crispy cereal.
1 x lined baking tin or dish

Method:
Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the marshmallows or Fluff and heat until melted together. Add the Rice Crispy cereal a bit at a time until you have the consistency you require. If using marshmallows be aware that the mixture starts to solidify rather quickly and can be difficult to work with.
Spoon into the lined baking tray or dish and smooth flat with the back of a buttered spoon.
Leave to cool and then either leave au natural or dribble with chocolate or dust with edible glitter and cut into squares.