Into the Garden!

These past few months, I have been spending quite some time in my garden. I also acquired some new plants which inspired me all the more to garden! There are still a lot of spaces in our lawn that can be planted, so gardening time is still a long way to go.

My recent plant purchase was this really cute succulent plant with heart shape leaves. Although it was a bit expensive, it was really a love at first sight thing! I also happened to have this heart shaped planter which I bought very very cheap because the hand was broken, and to conceal it, I hot glued some paper flowers to it. Now, it was just perfect for my new heart shape plant.



Some of my new/recent plants.

A New Drinking Glass!

My happiness is shallow, I must admit! I just can't help to be ecstatic when something new interests me. Well, maybe some people can relate.

I had lunch at McDonalds today and I noticed that the woman before me bought a drinking glass. She seems happy to have it, so when it was my turn and after I made my order, I asked the crew about the glass. She handed me two glasses and told me that's the colors they have left. It was a 2012 London olympics glass partnered by McDonalds and Coca-Cola. Since, the price is reasonable, I decided to buy a Purple color one. I like Purple too anyway!

When I got home, I washed it and used it. Gosh, I don't know but it just felt so refreshing to drink from! The contour of the glass is also nice and the color is great. When there is water, the color really comes out. I think it will be my drinking glass from now on!

Business Venture: Home Decors!

Earliear this month, I bought some Christmas decors. Figurines mostly. A nativity set, two houses for a Christmas village theme and a Christmas theme Penguin choir figurine. I tried to set up a Christmas village using whatever figurines I have that I can add to my new purchases. It then inspired me to look for more items at an online selling site. Of course, there are a lot of available items to choose from. But, I did not buy any, instead, I sold some!

Yes, I sold two items! One of the houses and the Penguin choir figurine. I got actually the biggest surprise of the year because of that. I started selling some old magazines last month and they are not selling at all. Since, there are still a duplicate house and Penguin figurine at the store, I decided to why not post them and sell at the site. In just 24 hours, when I opened my account again, the Penguin figurine was bought and there are watchers for the house! Then, the next day, somebody started inquiring about the house and just before the auction ended, I got a buyer already. Next thing I know, I was busy packaging the items.

Another surprise I had was that, I got a support from hubby to go for it when I told him I want to venture into that business. Well, just start with a small capital and it's okay then! And of course, a lot of beware of this, beware of that...lol!!!

I know that I may have sold some today but might take a while before I sell any again, but it is teaching me confidence, faith in myself and to be hopeful. Anyway, I really hope and pray that it will be successful!

I just want to share the picture of my Nativity set.

These are what I have sold:

A Crafty Handmade Christmas!

Christmas is in the air! These past days, whenever I am having my coffee in the morning or my afternoon tea in our porch, I can already find myself singing "Malamig ang simoy ng hangin..." . It means "the breeze of the air is cool"! It is a Filipino song often heard during the start of the Christmas season. Anyway, it just inspired me to start putting up our Christmas decors. When I set up our tree, I decided I want a really filled up Christmas tree this year. However, I don't really want to buy new ornaments, so I thought of making some DIY decors myself.

First I made was repurposed a Christmas theme fabric into throw pillows. I bought it from a rummage sale about five years ago and I use it as a tree skirt. It was actually meant to be a fabric book with Christmas carols. I always wanted to cut them up and make them into throw pillows but I am waiting for the time when I can have a sewing machine. Since I still don't have the it yet, I decided not to wait and handsew them anyway. It took me three afternoons of back stitching! Hand and fingers ached, but like they say, no pain no gain!

Second, I made these tree cones. I covered the larger ones with gold ribbons and garland. Then I tried the wires. I formed it using just a cardboard cone and it's not as easy as I thought! Maybe it is easier if you form it in a cone styrofoam.

Third, is for the tree! I made this little stocking and seed beads icicles. The icicles look surprisingly beautiful that I want to make some more!

I'm still making some projects and will post them again next time!


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Win a Wrtiting Set Give-away

Win a Writing Set from Papemelroti!

My favorite country store here in the Philippines is again giving away a fabulous writing set. It is open worldwide. Please check it out and enjoy your visit to their website!

Landscaping My Little Garden

Time to landscape my garden!

I have dreamt of landscaping my garden for such a long time now and finally, these past couple of weeks, the DIY landscaping began.

Although we have quite a large front yard to turn into a beautiful garden, planning the design and the lay-out seems to be harder than I thought. Besides more plants are needed. So, for now, I will settle with the little side areas around the house to work on.

I have finished one area (side of our porch) and is working on with the next one. The weather is not good today, and the forecast is that it's still going to be for the next couple of days. Oh, the weather, really! Just when I am in gardening momentum!

Anyway, here is a photo of my landscaping work. I also did the lighthouse using plastic pots, lampshade candle holder, some paints and nail polish.

I would really love to hear your comments and suggestions.

Soft Choco Chip Oatmeal Cookie

Yehey!!! My first ever "successfully baked" cookie! This is the third time that I tried baking cookies and finally, I got it right! I over baked the first one and I don't know what happened with the second one (it did not dropped or spread out). I did follow the recipes, but maybe something went wrong with how I mixed the ingredients? Well, this time, I watched the video here over and over and followed it well!

The joy of baking, really!

Last week, I also baked my first pie. A pumpkin pie! It was okay, though my pie crust was not really flaky and I think the filling was a little bit watery. But I'm happy that I now know how to make a crust and bake a pie!

Linking to:

Longganisa Fried Rice

It's frugal Friday today! This time I am featuring my dinner (I'm eating alone) from some left-overs. I have about a cup and a half of steamed rice and two pieces left-over of Longganisa, a Philippine sausage. It's garlic flavor and it is really yummy! I usually save the garlicky oil that it produced to flavor fried rice. So, for this dish, I am copying the Chao Fan fried rice of a local Chinese fastfood. Well, eating alone can also be fun!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup steamed rice (left-over)
2 pcs. Longganisa (Philippine sausage)or Chorizo in Spanish
1 egg, scrambled
2 cloves garlic, minced and browned
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp Longganisa oil
salt and pepper to taste
chopped parsley

How I made it:

1. Crumble one piece of Longganisa. Set aside.
2. Scramble one egg. Then slice it into small cubes. Set aside.
3. Saute steamed rice in minced garlic and Longganisa oil.
4. Add crumbled Longganisa and mix well. Add scrambled egg.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix in sesame oil.
6. Slice the other Longganisa into thin slices.
7. Garnish with chopped parsley.

My Pink Lily's First Bloom

I remember how ecstatic I am when I first saw that my Lily plant is going to have it's first bloom. I forgot what color it is and so, the anticipation added more excitement. Everyday, it was the first thing I look in my garden. I fell in love with it even more when I saw the bud started opening and I had a glimpse of some pink shade! Gosh, a Pink Lily! I wanted to take a photo of it, but I decided to wait another day when it opened more. But then, came the bad weather. A very bad one. A stormy one that eventually became a typhoon in our area. A typhoon that stayed for days, almost a week! I could not go out in the garden to marvel the blooming of the Lily up close. I only look at it from the window.

So I grabbed the chance to get some photos when the rain stopped. By the time the typhoon was gone, the flower was not in its best condition anymore. I am really disappointed and sad that I was not able to indulge myself in my first Pink Lily!

Dish Gardens

My first couple of attempts in creating a dish garden. They are almost a week now and so far they are thriving! I love looking at them!

A Great Time to Read

I have been reading the book, "The Bridges of Madison County" on and off for weeks now. Though the story is exciting and I love it, I can't seem to finish it since the gardening bug attacked me! But today, it's been raining all morning and the news said we are on a storm signal #1. That means a break from my latest obsession "gardening"!

So today, I just curled up on my reading chair and finally finished the book. As usual, after I read a very good book, it always makes me feel like I am really going to miss reading it.

Just my thought: I like reading the book better than having watched the movie version. I however picture the characters in the persons of Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep!

I think I am adding "a trip to Madison County to see all the covered bridges" in my bucket list! I had a virtual tour of it over the internet though!

Gardening Bug!

I think I've been bitten by a gardening bug lately! No crafting, no baking, no watching dvd's, less tv and internet... just gardening! It started when I bought some plants. Three plants at first, then another three, then another three and another three once again. Why always three? The lady vendor sells it to me 3 for 100 pesos (about US$2.20). It is quite a reasonable price. Our house is quite far and I only commute when I go downtown so I only get to buy three per trip.

Here are some of the plants that I have transplanted.

Jade Plant

Serissa

Horsetail

Golden Pothos

Country Woman Magazine

I am currently reading a back issue copy of Country Woman magazine over breakfast. I really love that magazine! I enjoy reading it and I learned a lot about country living. More so, I learned how it is to be a "country woman" in deeds and spirit. It also gives me a lot of inspiration and motivation. I lived in the city (since I was born and) until I got married nine years ago. My husband came from another province, which is in the countryside and we have decided that we will live in his hometown since there is a house and a property already. So, I quit my job and moved. Also, I was not really domesticated at that time, especially when it comes to cooking, furnishing and decorating the house. So, I re-read my country woman magazines for ideas and they helped me a lot. It was also a good thing that I do love country style decorating.

Anyway, since they were special magazines and I am considering them one of my collections already, I keep them in a shelf in my bedside table. Sadly, two years ago, a very strong typhoon caused severe flood and our house was deeply flooded. I was not home that time and my brothers-in-law only saved appliances and furniture. I was so sad when I saw my magazines!

How I wish it is just easy and cheap for a subscription here in the Philippines. I only buy my copies from a bookstore that sells second hand books and back issue magazines. I first got my copy way back 2002 and I instantly fell in love with it. Since then, I hunt for other copies in the said bookstores. They were also being sold in a reasonable price. Some copies were even way cheaper. Of course, I also saw one from another bookstore where the price is way higher, but then, I really want it so I bought it!

I can say that I must have collected about 10 to 15 already. But now, I only have two! There is no bookstore like the one I mentioned above here and I just got my two copies during my recent trip to my hometown. This is why I am so happy when I am finally reading a copy again over french toasts and a cup of strong black coffee! Such a blissful morning!

Pork Kaldereta

Kaldereta is one of Philippines most loved dishes. It is my husband's favorite and when he comes home from his work overseas, he requests his brother to cook the dish. I wanted to learn cooking it myself, so I asked and tried it. The feedback is very good and I am so happy!



Ingredients
1 kilo pork
2 pcs. potatoes, large
2 pcs. carrots, large
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
2 pcs. whole pickles
1 can liver spread, small
1 can evaporated milk, small
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups water
1 onion
5 cloves garlic, minced
cooking oil
salt
pepper

Cooking Method
1. Slice pork, potatoes, carrots, bell peppers and whole picles into medium size cubes.
2. Heat cooking oil in a casserole and sauté the garlic, onion and the beef. Add water, evaporated milk, tomato sauce and liver spread. Simmer until pork starts to become tender. Add in the potatoes, carrots and pickles.
3. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Continue to simmer until pork and vegetables are tender and the sauce thickens.
5. Serve hot with plain steamed rice.

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Used Postage Stamps Tray!

I finally made the tray projects that I planned to do six months ago! Gosh, that's how long I've been away from my crafting activities! Well, it's good to be back!

Last November, as I was going around the yard of my parents-in-law, I saw these two sound system speaker covers in their trash. The net covers were torn but the frame seems to be something that I can use for future projects, so I took them home.



I remember I saw a center table where the owner made a picture frame into a tray to hold their table accessories. I think it was really a great idea. So, I decided to do that.I looked at my paper stash to see if I have something that is whole and would fit the frame but I have none. Then I thought of the used postage stamps that I have collected from Swap-bot and I decided to make a collage of it for the design. I then went to a glass company and bought four pieces of clear glass that are cut to the size of the frames. All materials are set and just waiting for the craft day, but I got so busy preparing the house before I leave for my Christmas vacation in my hometown. A vacation that took me six months! ;)

Anyway, I'm back and yesterday, as I was putting the things I have acquired from Swap-bot for the last six months in their proper storage, a new baggie of used postage stamps reminded me of the tray project. These baggie of stamps were mostly vintage and since I love vintage things, I got so inspired and thought of using them for one of the trays. Excited much, I started lay-outing the stamps and eventually finished decoupaging them to the glass and let them dry overnight.

And finally, here they are:

For the center table:


The other one is for the our dining table. I used a red fabric scrap which I also got from Swap-bot.



How I made them:

I first took the net covering of the frame.


Then I glued one piece of glass to the frame using a silicone sealant.


Time to take out those lovely vintage used postage stamps and start collaging. As for the other tray, I covered the bottom glass with the fabric tightly.




Finally, I placed the other piece of glass on top of the collage and fabric. And these are the finished products!




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Monday


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Friday