Coasters

These coasters is one project that i just finished. I managed to do 1 a day! The pattern is simple and taken from a Crochet Pattern Book by Nihon Vogue. This book is excellent and has diagrams to represent the patterns which make it so much more easier to follow.

Christmas Snowflakes

I crocheted these snowflakes from wool that i got at Walmart...they had them in Christmas colours with gold thread entwined. The designs for these snowflakes are from different websites. ( Thank God for the internet and all the wonderful people out there who share their talent & ideas with the rest of the world!)

Some of websites are:

http://www.sarahanns.com/crochetworks/snowflakes.html

http://chezcrochet.com/page71.html

http://members.aol.com/JSchlossma/6ptso.html

Seasons Greetings to one and all.......

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Baby Blanket

My baby blanket is finally ready! It took me about 2 months to finish it. Now that its done i am happy i finished it and it was not one of my projects which have been abandoned!!

I followed a pattern that came with the wool. It was pretty easy. I felt the border could have been a little bigger but i was too lazy to add a few more rows...so just stuck to the pattern.

Green Masala Chicken

This is a recipe i made up myself and it tasted really good. ( If i can say so myself!)

Chicken - 250gms cut into small pieces

Onion - 1 chopped fine

Cinnamon - 1" stick

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

For masala: Grind with very little water to a paste

A handful of cilantro, chopped

4 green chillies

2 cloves of garlic

1/2 inch piece of ginger

1 tsp of pepper corns

Heat about 2 tbsps of oil in a kadai. Put in the cinnamon stick. Add the onions and fry well. When i did it the onions became slightly burnt but it tasted all the better! After that add the ground masala and salt, fry for a few minutes adding one sprig of curry leaves. Add chicken pieces and mix well till the chicken is well coated with the masala, cover and on slow fire let the chicken pieces cook.

When the chicken is cooked, keep on frying till the water evaporates and the masala is thick.

Goes well with rice & dhal, rice and rasam, curd rice & chapaties.

Had very little left to take the picture...that's why the quantity in the picture is not the whole 250 gms of chicken!

Pen & Letter Stands

This is an interesting way of using tins (eg. canned food) and boxes (eg. cornflakes).

Pen Stands - After washing the tin thoroughly and taking out the label, you can cover the outside by sticking different types of paper. Use feltpens, paints, buttons...whatever is lying around. Be creative. ( i have not really used my creative side on these pictured above!)

Boxes - Cut down the top of the box to the size you want. Cover with paper and decorate. Really simple. Easy way to organise your stuff like papers, address books, letters, cheque books, envelopes, clips, pins etc.

Beading

One of my favourite places to be is Micheals - the art and craft store! This is where i picked up an interest to learn beading. I would go through the books there and couldnt beleive how easy it looked to be creative and make lovely beaded jewellery!

I decided to do the beading workshop that they had advertised. It was just for 3 hours and i would learn the basics. I'm glad i did, it was a nice learning experience. I was so excited - i had just made my first bracelet and matching earrings!

From then on i have been practicing making different types of earrings & bracelets. It is an enjoyable art and recommended for anyone who is creative and enthusiastic about art and craft.

Pepper Mutton

Mutton - 1/4 kg

Onion - 1 chopped

Grind - 1 tbsp pepper corns, 3 green chillies, 3 big flakes garlic, a small piece ginger, a small bit of cinnamon.

Pressure cook the mutton with a little turmeric powder.

Heat 2 tbsps oil in a pan, add the onion and fry well. Add the ground masala, mutton and salt to taste. Keep on frying till the mutton is well coated with the masala and cooked. (Water can be added a little at a time in case the masala dries up too much and is sticks to the bottom of the pan ) Add curry leaves, fry till it is dry.