Jikana Damaru

the week that was

i hope you had a happy week. enjoy your weekend. any plans?

Organizing my craft room part two

All images by Torie Jayne

Since last week I have continued organizing my craft room, this time concentrating on my bundles of embroidery threads, yarns, ribbons and sewing threads. Almost finished...

Have a sweet day!

Newborn mums

This post is for my dear friend, who is struggling right now.

'Baby' is such a beautiful word, so full of history and promise and love. Squishy-ishy cuddles and sweet smells and overwhelming joy that makes you look at your partner in a whole new way. We made this. The closeness that a baby brings is magical. We made this, together.

'Baby' is such a scary word, so full of hurt and responsibility and unknowables. Selflessness, smells and overwhelming worry that makes you look at yourself in a whole new way. I did this. The terror that a baby brings is gut-wrenching. I did this, only me.

Late at night when all is finally silent and you're lying there, wide-awake, wondering, know this:

You are a newborn mum. You were born only eight weeks ago.

You are still missing the womb. Your baby and you; both utterly terrified to be out. Untethered. Nurture yourself as kindly and carefully as you nurture your new baby. There are no wrong ways, no right ways, just ways. There is no blame or guilt, only you and she and him and right now. The newborn world is relentless, but it has a rhythm of its own that you will find if you are gentle. Give in to the moments and trust that the future will take care of itself when it is ready.

You are a newborn mum. You were born only eight weeks ago.

What advice can you give my friend right now?

[Image via Facebook]

someone's ticklish :)

i went

here recently to enjoy some bathing time with my Mum & her sister who is visiting us from the UK. it was just the perfect place to unwind & relax & enjoy. not having my phone in my pocket to check consistently for a few hours was bliss!

the gift shop sold some turkish bath towels that would be just the thing to have as you step from pool to pool {the towels we had taken got very wet & hence showering/dressing afterwards was a little tricky}

here are a few little bits & pieces i think would be the perfect accompaniment to a day of relaxing at the springs. time at the beach. trip to the local pool or for a holiday in the tropics!

turkish bath towels available here

cotton plastic lined oversized bag available here

good looking & comfortable footwear available here

nourish organics coconut body wash available here

{all images from the mentioned product websites}

Gluten-free Victoria sandwich cake love letters

Gluten-free Victoria sandwich love letter cakes (makes 12 letter cakes)

Ingredients

150g butter
150g caster sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
150g gluten-free self raising flour
3 tablespoons milk
Icing sugar
4tbsp strawberry jam
Whipping cream

What you will need

Love Letters cake mould

Cooking instructions

Preheat oven to 165C/325F
Grease letter mould and place on baking tray
Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy
Beat in eggs one at a time
Beat in vanilla essence
Fold in the sifted flour and baking powder
Slowly beat in milk
Spoon or pipe cake mixture into moulds
Bake for about 15 mins until skewer comes out clean
Leave to cool in moulds
Then turn out cakes onto a chopping board
Using a bread knife, cut cake letters in half width ways
Divide jam between the bottom half of the letter cakes and spread evenly across cakes
Whip the cream until stiff peaks form and fill piping bag fitted with a star nozzle
Pipe a layer of cream on top of jam covered cakes
Place top half of cakes on top of jam
Lightly dust with sieved icing sugar

Tip: I use Wiltons cake release to grease my moulds, but brush it on and use very sparingly

I also couldn't resist making some chunky chocolate letters using my new love letters mould from Bombay Duck, method same as chocolate lollipops.

Don't forget to enter my Bombay Duck giveaway!

Have a sweet day!

Cutie pie vintage

I adore getting creative with clothing. If I was skinny, I would be one hot dresser but it has come to my attention over the years that pre-1998 no-one appeared to be overweight and they certainly weren't six feet tall. Nothing vintage fits me. I'm lucky to get a roomy Sussan XL to fit me right now, but that's another story.

I initially wanted this post to be about gorgeous vintage clothes and the girls that become them, but I noticed something odd when deciding who to feature. The poses. All the gals who do the vintage look, well, they do the same poses as well. Are the poses vintage too?

What happens is that all these wonderfully quirky individuals end up looking a lot like each other. Somewhere along the way, whatever makes them 'different' makes them exactly the same. And, really, what is it with the 'little girl lost' poses? Does wearing vintage also mean you have to regress back in time yourself? The women I'm featuring here, and the stunning clothes they wear, are all marvellous, absolutely marvellous. And yet...

I'm not sure what to do with it.

The hair twirl

(aka the cutesy one leg bend)